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UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



AN ALL-AKOUND BOY 



AN ALL-AROUND BOY 



Clje life anD tetters 



OF 



RALPH ROBINSON GREEN 



By HIS FATHER 












NEW YORK 

ANSON D. F. RANDOLPH AND COMPANY 

(incorporated) 
182 Fifth Avenue 



\ 






Copyright, 1893, 
By Anson D. F. Kandolph and Company 

(INCORPORATED). 



Slnttattjj Press: 

John Wilson and Son, Cambridge, U.S.A. 






TO 

The J. P. C.'s and "The Crowd" in Buffalo, New York, 

The Boys and Girls in "The Oranges;" 

The Class of 1892 of Newark Academy; 

The Class of 1896 of Princeton College; 

and to 

The Young People who may read these pages, 

Efjts foook is affecttonateig tototcatcU, 

With the prayer that they may be long spared for 
happy, useful, and noble lives. 



PREFACE. 



This book is the story of the life of one of the 
happiest boys we ever knew. He fairly bnbbled 
over with fun ; but it was the right kind of fun, 
for it was joined with purity of heart, earnestness of 
purpose, willingness to do hard work, and Christian 
faith. What " good times " he had the following 
pages will show. May they also show their young 
readers that nobility of character and faithfulness 
in the discharge of duty may go hand in hand with 
a happy life. 

RUFUS S. GREEN. 

Orange, N. J., 

July, 1833. 



CONTENTS. 



Chapter Page 

I. An Interesting Corner 13 

II. Early Days 19 

III. Philatelic Fever 25 

IV. A Printing-Press 31 

V. Wanted — a Boy 39 

VI. In the High School 47 

VII. Amateur Journalism 55 

VIII. A Little Nonsense 65 

IX. Writing Compositions 77 

X. Vacations 91 

XI. In Newark Academy 105 

XII. Boy Friends 113 

XIII. Girl Friends 123 

XIV. Selected Letters: First Year 141 

XV. Selected Letters : Second Year t . . . 155 

XVI. Selected Letters: Third Year 179 

XVII. Last Pays of School 195 



x Contents. 

Chapter Page 

XVIII. Planning a Fishing Excursion 209 

XIX. Again in a Canadian Camp 223 

XX. A Stunning Blow 233 

XXI. God's Acre . . . . . 245 

XXII. Conclusion 249 



CHAPTEE I. 



AN INTERESTING CORNER. 



/So many worlds, so much to do, 
So little done, such things to be, 
How know I what had need of thee, 
For thou wert strong as thou wert true. 

Tennyson. 



AN ALL-AROUND BOY. 



CHAPTER I. 

AN INTERESTING CORNER. 

WHAT do I mean by an " all-around boy " ? I 
am glad you ask, for I should dislike to 
■write even a page without your understanding clearly 
just what is intended by the title of this book. 

Suppose you go with me to the grounds of the Man- 
hattan Athletic Club on one of its field-days, or, better 
still, when an intercollegiate contest like the one 
which will be described further on in this book 1 is 
taking place. I am sure you will enjoy it. Other- 
wise I should think that you were old before your 
time. Afcer getting comfortably seated, we shall of 
course look over the programme. The first " event " 
is the one-hundred-yards dash. Then comes the 
one-hundred-and-twenty-yards hurdle-race. The two- 
miles bicycle-race, the four-hundred-and-forty-yards 
dash, the one-mile run, the one-mile walk, throwing 
the hammer, running high and broad jumps, putting 
the shot, pole-vaulting, and other contests follow in 
their order. 

1 Page 200. 



14 An All- Around Boy. 

We look over the names of the contestants. Here, 
for instance, is a name found only under the one- 
hundred-yards dash ; and here is another entered 
only for the bicycle race ; while a third is content with 
contesting for the prize to be awarded for the highest 
jump. But here is one who will compete in sev- 
eral different "events." Evidently he is a good 
runner, a good rider, a good jumper, a good vaulter, 
and a good thrower of the hammer. He excels in 
many directions ; in other words, he is an all-around 
athlete. 

Some boys excel in their studies, are regular book- 
worms, but they could no more play a good game of 
tennis or get a place on a strong base-ball nine than 
they could live without eating. There are other boys 
who do well in these and similar games who have no 
fondness for school or books ; and there are boys who 
are leaders both in sport and in study, who have bad 
hearts, who lack conscience, and are not governed by 
principle, 

An all-around boy must be good in each of these 
particulars. He must have a strong mind as well as a 
strong body, and with these he must have a good 
heart. True culture recognizes the proper importance 
of each of these natures, — the physical, the intellec- 
tual, and the moral or spiritual, — and the relation of 
each to the others. The ideal man or boy is he who 
is not only strong physically, but whose mind is well 
trained, and whose heart is responsive to whatever is 
true and right 



An Interesting Corner. 15 

It is of such a boy that I am going to tell you, — a 
boy who was as fond of sports and games as any 
of you are ; a boy who studied as enthusiastically as 
he played ; a boy who loved the truth and followed 
the right. Of course he was not perfect. He did 
some things probably which you ought not to do; 
nevertheless he was a true boy, whom you would 
have liked had you known him, just as every one did 
who knew him. He would have made you like him, 
for he would have entered into your plans, and taken 
part in your play and work, and have done it so 
modestly and helpfully that he. would have quickly 
gained your respect and affection. 

But you will discover for yourself his various traits 
of character in the pages which follow, and especially 
in his own letters which I shall let you read. I need 
not say that I feel confident that long before the last 
page shall have been reached you will look upon him 
as a friend whom you will feel glad to know. 

In the " Study " where I am writing there is a 
corner which is very precious to me because it con- 
tains the things which belonged to this many-sided 
boy. I am going to enumerate some of them to show 
you that I made no mistake when I chose for the title 
of this book "An All- Around Boy." 

Here they are : — 

1. A series of school-books, beginning with the work 
he did in the Kindergarten and ending with the Latin, 
Greek, and mathematics needed for entering college. 



16 An All- Around Boy. 

2. A little library of general literature, and the 
bound volumes of several juvenile periodicals. 

3. School reports, compositions, translations of 
Virgil, Cicero, Homer, etc., diplomas, and a certificate 
of admission to Princeton College. 

4. Certain base-ball belongings, including posters, 
dodgers, and tickets of admission to the games of his 
club. 

5. A Sears tennis-racquet, and several books on 
tennis. 

6. A pair of skates. 

7. Fishing-tackle, — hooks, spoons, flies, rod, etc. 

8. A Scott international postage-stamp album, fairly 
well filled. Envelopes and boxes containing stamps 
for sale and exchange. 

9. Specimens of job-printing, and files of amateur 
newspapers, three of which he edited. 

10. A guitar, and numerous pieces of music for the 
same. 

11. A Columbia bicycle. 

12. An Alpenstock, on which are burned his name 
and the names of the places he visited on a tramp 
through Switzerland when he was thirteen years 
old. An album, filled with Alpine flowers which he 
collected. 

13. Photographs of many friends, both boys and 
girls, and trinkets which they had given him. 

14. Several hundred letters, including about sixty 
descriptive of his two trips to Europe, — the second 
when he was fourteen. 



An Interesting Comer, 17 

15. Topic-cards of young people's prayer-meetings, 
which lie attended and often led. 

16. An Oxford Bible and a pocket New Testament, 
in which are many "studies" for use chiefly in the 
meetings just mentioned. 



Groiv, my little child, and bloom ; 
And may this be ever true, 
That all hearts shall long for you 
As for floivers in winter's gloom. 

Laura A. Skinner. 



CHAPTEE II. 



EARLY DAYS. 



THE name of this all-around boy is Kalph Eobinson 
Green. He was so called after his great-grand- 
father, Eev. Kalph Eobinson, who preached the 
gospel for many years in northern New York, and was 
greatly loved and honored throughout his long life. 
This Eev. "Mr. Eobinson was a direct descendant of the 
famous John Eobinson, the pastor of our Pilgrim 
Fathers, who in 1620 landed upon Plymouth Eock. 
Ealph Eobinson married Anna Weeks, who descended 
from John Alden and Priscilla Mullins. Doubtless 
you remember the story of the courtship of Miles 
Standish, so interestingly told by Longfellow. If so, 
you know how it was that Priscilla came to marry the 
" fair-haired, azure-eyed " Alden, " youngest of all the 
men who came in the Mayflower," rather than doughty 
Captain Standish. 

On his father's side Ealph could trace his ancestors 
back beyond the War of the Eevolution, in which some 
of them bore a brave and noble part. Surely he could 
claim, if any one could, to be an American. 

It was in the cosey little parsonage in Westfield, 
N. Y., on Oct. 7, 1874, that Ealph was born. His father, 
upon graduating from the Theological Seminary a 



20 An All* Around Boy. 

little more than a year before, had been called to this 
pleasant rural parish, where he had found a cordial 
and cultured people, whose uniform kindness made his 
home and work a constant delight. 

The advent of a son into the parsonage was an event 
full of interest and joy. The thankful parents received 
the gift as from God, and w T ith grateful hearts dedi- 
cated the little one to God. Congratulations poured in 
from parishioners and distant friends ; and life seemed 
to have a new dignity and worth. 

Two of these congratulatory letters are unique in 
their way. The first purports to have been written by 
a cousin, then five months old. 

My dear wee Coz, — What do you think of this e'er 
mundane sphere ? We — mamma, papa, and I — have 
been delighted to hear of your safe arrival. I hope you 
stood the journey well. We send our love and congratu- 
lations to yourself, your dear mamma and papa. My 
mamma says she is going right up to see you, — she can- 
not wait. What is the color of the capillary substance 
on the top of your caput ? 

Your loving Coz. 

The second letter runs as follows : — ■ 

My dear Sam ! 1 — I hasten on the wings of love to 
congratulate you that you — Ahem ! — give it up. 

Let me remark that it 's real mean for your folks to 
open this letter, but as I don't suppose you would open 
it, it will be all right. 

1 The writer supposed the baby would be named for his grandfather, 
Rev. Samuel N. Robinson. 



Early Days. 21 

How do they take care of you ? Do they keep you 
warm ? If they don't, just telegraph me, prepaid, and 
I '11 make 'em behave. But I 've not the slightest doubt 
but that you are fully able to command the exclusive 
attention and respect of the entire crowd. 

Assert your rights, my boy, and don't be trampled 
upon. You have rights which they are bound to respect. 

Let them understand that you are there at all times, 
and don't be afraid to use your lungs on all occasions. 
There is nothing that will arrest their attention so well 
as a good hard yell — just when everything is quiet. 

When you want some palegolic, — why, just make it 
understood, and keep on till you get it. And you must 
pull hair whenever you get a chance. No matter if it 
does hurt, — it will do them good. 

I suppose they are rather proud of you. Have you 
seen anything which would lead you to think so ? 

Of course there never was such a baby as you are. 
Well, Samuel, be a good boy, and God bless you. 

Write soon. 

Lovingly yours. 

The few years that followed can scarcely be expected 
to contain many matters of interest. Of course there 
were wise and wonderful sayings, sweet and winning 
ways, worthy of a place in " Baby's First Book,'-' but 
hardly of sufficient importance to be recorded here. 

Perhaps, however, it ought to be said that Balph 
began his school life in Morris town, N. J., whither his 
father had been called to take charge of the historic 
First Church of that city. It was a great blessing to 
him that he came at the outset of his studies under 
the loving care and training of two most estimable 



22 An All- Around Boy. 

Christian teachers, — the Misses Emma and Lottie 
Campbell. When you sing " Jesus of Nazareth passeth 
by," you will be glad to remember that it was written 
by the former of these two sisters. Your Sunday- 
school library may contain some of her excellent 
books. These ladies were also his Sunday-school 
teachers. In each position they sought with consum- 
mate tact to impress upon him, as they did upon each 
of their pupils, the essentials of a pure and noble 
Christian life. Only Heaven will reveal the splendid 
harvest of their faithful sowing. 

In the autumn of 1881 the family removed to 
Buffalo, N. Y., and Ralph was placed in Grammar 
School No. 14, from which he graduated in 1888. 
His work during these years was unmarked by any 
special excellence. He found it easy to maintain a 
good standing in his classes, but gave little promise of 
the exceptional scholarship to which he afterward 
attained. Like most healthy boys, he was content to 
live and have a good time. He was fond of reading, 
and would go through a book so quickly that it was 
quite a problem with his parents how to furnish him 
with literature which would be profitable as well as 
interesting, ■ — a problem whose importance no parent 
can overestimate. 1 

Of course he was greatly interested in the sports 
of the boys, especially in base -ball. His chief objection 

1 The Christmas present most prized by Ralph was a yearly ticket 
of admission to the Buffalo Library, which permitted him to draw 
books from its well- tilled shelves. 



Early Days. 23 

to spending a summer in Europe was that his absence 
would weaken his nine, and might injure his own 
future prospects on the team. 

He was never idle. If not at school or at play or 
reading, he was busy with one or another scheme 
which he always had on hand. Two of these schemes, 
I am quite sure, will interest my young readers, and 
accordingly are described in the following chapters. 



The post is the grand connecting link of all trans- 
actions, of all negotiations. Those who are absent, by 
its means become present ; it is the consolation of life. 

Voltaire. 



CHAPTEE III. 

PHILATELIC FEVER. 

THE collecting of postage-stamps is one of the 
most fascinating of pursuits. It is deservedly 
popular among boys, for it combines to an unusual 
degree amusement with instruction. Incidentally it 
teaches a good deal of geography and history. One 
wants naturally to know where .the country is whose 
stamps he collects. He inquires whose are the faces 
printed upon them. He notes the changes in govern- 
ment or reigning power, by the variations of succes- 
sive issues. He quickly learns which countries are 
republics, which monarchies, which empires. He 
becomes familiar with the differing currencies of 
nations, and able to reckon correctly in them. His 
artistic taste is cultivated by constantly comparing 
different grades of work from the plainest wood-cuts 
to the finest steel-engravings. His skill is brought 
into continual play in discriminating between " genu- 
ines " and their imitations or counterfeits. 

How his interest grows as his collection increases ! 
What plans and devices he originates to secure some 
rare stamp, or complete some favorite set ! This he 
must do unless he has plenty of money, for many 
stamps because of their rarity are exceedingly valuable. 
There are single stamps, originally of little worth, that 
cost now a thousand dollars or more. 



26 An Ail-Around Boy, 

Ralph caught the fever quite early. He made an 
excellent start through the gift of a lady whose son 
had gathered before his death several hundred dif- 
ferent varieties. To these he added continually until 
his album, without counting duplicates, contained about 
three thousand specimens, and represented every coun- 
try where stamps are issued. 

His methods of collecting may be of service to those 
who are engaged, or who would like to engage, in this 
interesting pursuit. He bought comparatively few 
stamps for the double reason that he had little money 
to expend for them, and that their purchase would 
awaken less interest than their collection by his own 
efforts. Elderly people who might have preserved 
their letters of earlier years, received his first atten- 
tion. The waste-paper baskets of several large stores 
were the objects of frequent search. People who had 
foreign correspondents he interviewed, as he learned 
their names. Older boys and young men who had 
recovered from the fever l were sought out, and famous 
bargains often made with them. About this time it 
was suggested to him that our Board of Foreign Mis- 
sions, and the missionaries themselves, would probably 
prove a fruitful field to cultivate. Acting on this 
suggestion, he wrote to the secretaries in New York, 
and received not only cordial replies but many stamps 

1 It is a mistake to suppose that Philately is only a boyish passion. 
The American Philatelic Association is composed of more than five 
hundred men from all parts of the world. In England, on the Conti- 
nent, and in this country the most enthusiastic collectors are those who 
were boys many years ago. Our own government expects to realize at 
least $2,000,000 from the sale of its Columbian stamps to collectors. 



Philatelic Fever. 27 

from the far-away countries in which the Presbyterian 
Church is engaged in missionary labor. Then letters 
began to go directly to the missionaries themselves, 
and in due course of time packets of cancelled stamps 
(which are just as good for a collection as unused 
stamps) came back to him. Naturally many of them 
were duplicates ; and these he would keep for " trad- 
ing," exchanging them with other collectors for stamps 
which were not in his album". 

Those not familiar with this subject would be sur- 
prised to know how many are engaged in the stamp- 
business. For some of these dealers Kalph acted for 
a time as, agent. They would send him a sheet of 
stamps, and allow him a generous commission on all 
the sales he made. The amount of his commission he 
would usually expend in stamps for himself, sending 
back those unsold with the money he had received, 
and asking for a new sheet. After a time it occurred 
to him that he might do this kind of business for him- 
self; and many were the sheets which he made up 
out of his duplicates, and which were sold upon com- 
mission by his agents in and out of Buffalo. His 
letter-heads (printed by himself) at that time are here- 
with reproduced exactly : — 

Office of 

Kalph E. Green, 

DEALER IN 

Postage Stamps for Collections. 

56 Allen St., 



28 An All- Around Boy. 

The following letter written to him by a minister in 
the Hawaiian Islands is a good illustration of the 
educational value of stamp-collecting : — 

May 23, 1884. 

My dear young Friend, — Your interesting letter 
came last night. You have done well in the way of 
earning the stamps. But you are not entirely correct in 
your replies to my questions. Therefore I must give 
you some information which will make you wiser than 
your teacher on these points. In addition to the fact 
that Honolulu is twenty-one hundred miles from San 
Francisco, there is no inhabited place in the whole world 
from which one must go so far to find another inhabited 
spot as from the Hawaiian Islands. 

As to the most noted thing that can be said of these 
islands, there are various reasons why your statement, 
that it was their turning from cannibalism to Christian- 
ity, is incorrect. 

History will not bear it out. The fact is, the inhabi- 
tants were never in the habit of practising cannibalism. 

I must tell you how it is that many people, who are 
wiser than you, ever supposed the Hawaiians were man- 
eaters. They are very fond of pork and fish and squid, 
— a species of devil-fish. All these they dry on the 
roofs of houses, or by hanging them up on a tree. 
Especially do they hang up the heart and liver of the 
hog to dry as they do fish. 

Now, when Captain Cook, who had made the natives 
think he was a god, was once surrounded by them, he 
was so scared as to groan, whereupon they immediately 
killed him. For the purpose of some ceremony con- 
nected therewith, they took out his heart and hung it 
up on a tree. After the ceremony of burial was over, 
his heart was allowed still to hang on the tree where it 



Philatelic Fever. 29 

was first put. Finally, after a long time, a boy came 
along, and seeing a dried heart hanging to a tree, thought 
it a hog's heart and ate it. It afterwards transpired 
that the boy had eaten it, and it was ever after a great 
joke on him that he had eaten a man's heart. He is now 
an old man, and the natives never forget to remind him 
of the wonderful event of his boyhood, — because the 
idea of man-eating is abhorrent to them. 

That God may bless you abundantly is the earnest 
prayer of 

Yours sincerely, 



But mightiest of the mighty means 
On which the arm of progress leans, 
Man's noblest mission to advance, 
His woes assuage, his weal enhance, 
His rights enforce, his wrongs redress, 
Mightiest of the mighty is the Press. 

John- Bowking. 



CHAPTEK IV. 

A PKINTING-PKESS. 

POSSIBLY it was with some such thought as that 
contained in the lines on the opposite page that 
Ealph asked his father if he might receive a printing- 
press as a present on his eleventh birthday. The 
request was cheerfully granted, for his father appre- 
ciated the many benefits to be derived from work of 
this sort. The only question was what kind of a 
press should be purchased. If it was to be only a 
plaything of which he would soon tire, then the cheaper 
it was, the better ; but if he meant to stick to it and 
do good creditable work, he would need of course 
something more than a toy. All these matters 
were fully discussed, with the result that one of 
Golding & Co.'s Official No. 3 self-inking presses, cost- 
ing twenty-five dollars, was purchased. Then, after 
due deliberation as to what would be most serviceable, 
several fonts of type were bought, and duly distributed 
in cases exactly like those used in printing-offices, 
except that they were a third smaller. A cabinet, to 
hold these and additional cases that might be required 
later, was procured ; and then the happy boy was 
ready for business. 

The first order came from the family's milkman, and 
was for one thousand milk-tickets, — five hundred on 



32 An Ail-Around Boy. 

green cards, and an equal number on red cards. They 
read as follows : — 



ONE 
QUART. 




ISTo boy was ever happier than Ealph when he 
received payment for this his first job. 

Business increased ; and when it slackened his 
father usually had some work for the young printer. 

The following circular was sent out after the pur- 
chase of several new fonts of type : — 

Office of 
RALPH R. GREEN, 

Job and Fancy Printer, 
56 Allen St. 

S^f <W. /cP<? 



Dear Sir, 

Having added considerably to my stock of 
Printing Material during the last few months, I beg leave 
to call your attention to my fine work in the Printing line. 
As I have no rent to pay, and do my own work, I am able 
to make my prices lower than any Printing House in the 
city. 

Give me a trial order, and you will find it to your inter- 
est to place future orders with me. Business Cards a 
Specialty. Satisfaction is always Guaranteed , or Money 
Refunded. 

Yours Respectfully, 



Ralph R. Green. 



A Printing -Press. 



33 



Here is an exact reproduction, in so far as the size 
of this page will permit, of one of his jobs, which shows 
that it was the good work he did more than interest 
in a promising boy or his cheap prices, that secured 
abundant orders. It is the bill-head of one of the 
prominent grocers in Buffalo. 

IF ERRORS OR CLAIMS FOR DAMACES, PLEASE REPORT PROMPTLY. 



Fine Teas 


Olive Oil 


Fine Coffees. 


Sardines 


Fine Syrups 


English Pickles 


Canned Goods 


English Sauces 


Hominy 


Cranberries 


Grits 


Oranges 


Barley 


Lemons 


Dried Fruits 


Pine Apples 


Butter 


Bananas 


Lard 


Figs 


Cheese 


Raisins 


Tapioca 


Prunelles 


Sago 


Currants 


Vermicelli 


Prunes 


Maccaroni 


Dates 


Imported Nuts 


Citron 


Orange Peel 


i Lemon Peel 


&c. 


&c. 



Buffalo, N. K, 188 



TERMS— CASH. 



Bought of JAMES S. Li©©, 

DEALER IN 
FINE FAMILY GROCERIES. 

544 Main Street, Cor. Huron. 



In March, 1886, he issued the first number of a 
little monthly paper, which he called " The Mission- 
Querist." It consisted of two pages, sometimes three, 
and contained questions on the various mission-fields 
of the Presbyterian Church for the use of mission- 
bands. The questions, it is fair to say, were not pre- 
pared by him, but for everything else he assumed the 
entire responsibility. The circulation reached about 
fifteen hundred. 

3 



34 An All- Around Boy. 

This is the way the paper looked, the pages being 
three inches wide and four long, with a generous 
margin : — 

(First Page.) 

The Mission-Querist. 

VOL- I- BUFFALO, N. Y., NOVEMBER, 1886, NO. 9. 

H$j^ Younger children need answer only the 
questions in the coarser type. 

SOUTH AMERICA. 

1 Name the capital of the United States of 
Colombia. 

2 State the number of square miles and of 
people in the country. 

3 What is the prevailing religion ? 

4 What has interfered with the success of 
our mission-work during the past year ? 

5 Bound Brazil. 

6 Mention some of its chief cities. 
■7 What is its form of government? 

8 Number of square miles ? 

9 Population ? 

10 Prevailing religion ? 

11 Name some of the principal points in 
Brazil where the Presbyterian Church has 
missions. 

12 Who is now emperor of Brazil ? 

13 When did he visit this country ? 




THE EDITOR OF THE 'MISSION QUERIST. 



A Printing-Press. 35 



(Second Page.) 



THE MISSION-QUERIST. 



THE MISSION-QUERIST. 

Published monthly, as a help to Mission-bands, Sunday- 
schools, &c, by a boy interested in missions- 
Single Subscriptions per year 15 cents 
25 copies to one address " " . $2.50 
50 " " " " " " $4.00 
100 " " " " " " $5.00 
Copies above 100 to one address, per' year, each, 3 cents. 
Please remit by money order or draft. Postage-stamps 
taken for single subscriptions. 

Address all communications to 

Robin Green, — Publisher, 

56 Allen Street, Buffalo, N. Y. 
Entered as second-class mail matter at the Postoffice 
at Buffalo, N. Y. 

14 The principal cities in Chili ? 

15 In which are our mission-stations 
located ? 

16 Area and population of Chili ? 

17 How long has our Church been working 
there ? 

18 With what success ? 

19 Draw an outline map of Chili, and locate our stations. 

20 Same for Brazil. 

21 Same for United States of Colombia. 

22 Why do we send missionaries to these 
countries ? 



36 An All- Around Boy. 

In connection with the management of the business 
of his stamp-sales and press-work, it seemed a fitting 
opportunity to impress upon Eobin, as he was then 
called, certain fundamental business principles, and 
the importance of correct methods. First of all, he 
was made to understand the absolute necessity of per- 
fect honesty. He was taught never to break a promise. 
Taking a subscription for his paper for a year meant 
supplying it for a year; otherwise the money must 
be refunded. When he promised a job for a certain 
day, it must be ready on that day. 

An exact account was kept of all receipts and expen- 
ditures. Eeceipts were given for all moneys received, 
and required for all bills paid. For himself he printed 
this bill-head : — 



fo, QsV. jp/ /S><9 

Q£z 

to Ralph R. Green, dr., 

Book, Job, and. Faunoy Frinter. 

56 Allen Street. 
Lowest Prices. Best Work. Satisfaction Guaranteed. 
Business Cards a Specialty. Orders Solicited. 

A bank -account was opened in his name, and he 
early learned how to make deposits and draw checks. 
It may be added that when he sold his printing outfit, 



A Printing- Press. 37 

upon removing from Buffalo in 1890, he had a bank- 
balance of about two hundred dollars to his credit. 

As he began to make money for himself, it seemed 
a fit time to impress upon him that what he called his 
own was really the Lord's, and was to be used as trust 
funds ; that money was not to be squandered, or spent 
for merely selfish ends ; and that, in acknowledgment 
of God's just claim upon the whole, a definite and 
generous percentage of income should be given to His 
Church and work. Thus early in life he adopted the 
principle -and formed the habit of giving from his own 
income systematically and proportionately to benevo- 
lent objects. His name stands third upon the list of 
" The Presbyterian Union of Proportionate Givers," an 
organization proposed and commended by the General 
Assembly of that Church. 

He was taught never to slight his work, to be 
thorough and accurate in everything he did, and to 
aim always at the highest excellence. Every word 
must be spelled correctly, every period and comma be 
in its proper place, and the completed work present a 
neat, and tasteful appearance. How well he learned 
these lessons may be judged from the samples of his 
work already given. He never forgot what he thus 
learned. In none of his writings, even his most hur- 
ried letters, did he ever to the last neglect to capitalize, 
to punctuate, and to paragraph correctly. There is 
nothing like a printing-press to make one careful and 
exact in these respects. 



God/ Thou wert my childhood's love, 

My boyhood's pure delight, 

A presence felt the livelong day, 

A welcome fear at night. 

Frederick William Faber. 



CHAPTER V. 

WANTED — A BOY. 

A jolly boy. 
A boy full of vim. 

A boy who is square. 

A boy who scorns a lie. 

A boy who hates deceit. 

A boy who despises slang. 

A boy who can say No. 

A boy who is above-board. 

A boy who saves his pennies. 

A boy who will never smoke. 

A boy with shoes always blacked. 

A boy with some " stick-to -it." 

A. boy who takes to the bathtub and tooth-brush. 

A boy who is proud of his big sister. 

A boy who has forgotten how to whine. 

A boy who thinks hard work no disgrace. 

A boy who does chores without grumbling. 

A boy who stands at the head of his class. 

A boy who believes that an education is worth while. 

A boy who is a stranger to the street corners at night. 

A boy who plays with all his might — during playing 
hours. 

A boy who thinks his mother, above all mothers, is the 
model. 

A boy who takes his father into his confidence. 

A boy who does not know more than all the rest of the 
house. 



40 An All- Around Boy. 

A boy who does not think it inconsistent to mix playing 
and praying. 

A boy who does not wait to be called a second time in 
the morning. 

A boy whose absence from church and Sunday-school 
sets everybody wondering what has happened. 

The above, clipped from the columns of an excellent 
journal, could be profitably learned by heart by every 
one of my youthful readers. I once showed it, or a 
similar clipping, to Ealph, and spent two or three 
evenings in talking it over, item' by item, with him. 
He was a little fellow, not more than nine years old, 
but he saw the meaning and appreciated the worth of 
each point. His conclusion, to use his own words, 
was, " I '11 try to be such a boy." Of course I told him 
that he would probably fail many times and in many 
particulars, but that he must never be discouraged or 
give up trying. I told him, too, that he needed Jesus' 
help every day, and that he ought to ask for it every 
day, and that whenever he failed he should seek divine 
forgiveness. I think he understood that a jolly boy 
could be a Christian boy, and that one could have lots 
of fun without being low or mean or disobedient, or 
overbearing to younger children, or disrespectful to 
older people. And then we kneeled down and prayed 
that God would make him such a boy. 

I remember well another conversation we had when 
he was ten and a half years old, — introduced this time 
by himself. It was about coming to the Lord's Table 
at the approaching communion in the Lafayette Street 



Wanted — A Boy. 41 

Church. I was surprised at the request, for I had not 
thought of him as old enough to take such an impor- 
tant step. Gently I sought to discourage him, or 
rather to show him that it would be better to wait 
until he was older. But out of my own mouth, quot- 
ing from a sermon I had recently preached, he con- 
demned me. " Did n't you say," he asked, " that as 
soon as children are able to discern the Lord's 
body they are to be told it is their duty and privilege 
to come to His table ? I know what the bread and wine 
symbolize, — the broken body and the shed blood 
of Jesus. You said that children ought not to wait to 
sow wild oats, before giving their hearts to the Lord, 
but should be glad to serve Him all their lives. That 
is what I want to do. Am I too young to love Him 
and serve Him ? Why, then, if I know what the Lord's 
Supper means, should I be kept from His table?" I 
could offer no further objection, but only thank the 
dear Lord that He had given to my boy so clear an 
understanding of the truth, and so earnest a desire to 
accept it. Accordingly I said, "You have convinced 
me, my precious boy, that I should waive all objec- 
tions ; and I will leave the matter wholly with the 
Session of the Church. If they think it best, after 
talking with you, you will be admitted." At the 
appointed time he was examined by the elders, who 
without a dissenting voice welcomed him to a place 
at the table of our blessed Saviour. This was on 
the evening of April 2, 1885 ; and the following 
Sunday, April 5, the dear boy, with thankful heart, 



42 An Ail-Around Boy. 

ate the bread and drank the wine in remembrance of 
his crucified Lord. 

Neither Ealph nor his parents ever regretted the 
step, or felt that it was a mistake. 

His religious life developed steadily and beautifully. 
Its chief manifestation was in the growth of a symmet- 
rical and well-rounded character. He set before him 
too high a standard ever to feel vain or puffed up. 
He saw his defects, and sought to remedy them. He 
admired the excellence of " the perfect man," and pat- 
terned after it. He did not neglect to pray, or to read 
the Word of God. And thus he grew into a sweet and 
winsome boy, with graces of character that charmed 
all who knew him, combined with a sturdy and manly 
strength that commanded their respect. He was loved 
alike by boys and girls, by old and young. A lady 
once told his father that her servant-girl said of him, 
" I like Ealph Green better than any young fellow that 
comes here, because he always has a pleasant word 
and a smile for me." He was kind and polite to every 
one. 

He talked little, perhaps too little, on the subject of 
religion, — never except to his father and mother about 
his religious experiences. Not until he was fifteen was 
he willing to take part in any public meeting, even of 
young people. But by his winning ways and sturdy 
honesty, he impressed many with the beauty and 
power of a Christian life. No foul word ever passed 
his lips. No one ever thought of telling an indecent 
story or doing a mean thing in his presence. And 



Wanted — A Boy. 43 

yet he was the life and soul of any young company 
into which he went. If the letters which follow con- 
tain no direct exhortations to be a Christian or noth- 
ing concerning his religious experiences, they will at 
least show the joyful, healthful, and vigorous life of a 
boy who loved his Saviour, and whose religion did not 
interfere with his happiness, while it kept him far 
above anything that was low or mean. 

This chapter may fitly close with one or two of 
Ealph's talks in the young people's meetings, written 
out by him with that thoroughness which character- 
ized all his work, and found in his Bible a few months 
after their public use. 

Saving Faith. 

A few years ago, two men in a small row-boat at- 
tempted to cross Niagara River a short distance above 
the cataract. They reached the middle of the river 
without much difficulty, but then the strong current 
seized their frail boat and bore it along with irresistible 
force. Bealizing their imminent danger, the men worked 
for their lives. But it was to no avail. They were soon 
in the rapids, and in a few moments would go over the 
falls, never to be seen again. At last, however, one man 
was saved by floating a rope to him. At the same instant 
that the rope came into his hand, a log floated by the 
other man. Thoughtless and confused, he seized this 
instead of the rope. It was a fatal mistake. The one 
man was drawn to shore because he had connection with 
the people on the land ; while the other, clinging to the 
loose floating log, was carried over and never heard of 
afterwards. 



44 An All- Around Boy. 

Faith has a saving connection with Christ. He made 
atonement for us, but only by faith is this atonement 
available to us. We may represent Christ as on the 
shore, holding the rope ; and when we grasp it with the 
hand of confidence, he pulls us to the firm land. But 
our good works, when not connected to Christ by the 
line of faith, are as the floating log, which bears us along 
to destruction because it has no hold-fast on the heavenly 

shore. 

« 

Belay and its Danger. 

There is a story told in ancient history of a certain 
king who lighted a lamp and had ut hung in his palace. 
He then sent forth heralds to bring every criminal and 
rebel to his presence, that they might obtain pardon. 
Those who came while the lamp was burning were set 
free, while those who delayed until the lamp had gone 
out, or who disregarded the invitation, met with a ter- 
rible death. 

In the passage of Scripture that has just been read, 
we see that Christ condemns delay. No man can serve 
two masters. If we intend to serve and follow Christ, 
let us place our trust in him at once, and thus avoid the 
great danger of delay. 



CHAPTEE VI. 



IN THE HIGH SCHOOL. 



There is an unspeakable pleasure attending the life of 

a voluntary student. 

Goldsmith. 



CHAPTEK YI. 



IN THE HIGH SCHOOL. 



A LITTLE before Christmas, 1887, Balph was 
"^^ taken out of school because of ill-health. The 
physician directed that he should be kept as much as 
possible in the open air. Books were taken from him, 
and he was allowed to run wild for the rest of the 
school year. The only studying he did was in June, 
1888, for two weeks preceding the regents' examination 
necessary for admission into the High School, which 
he was anxious to enter in the coming autumn. The 
previous year he had passed the " regents' " in spelling 
and geography, leaving grammar and arithmetic, ac- 
cording to the custom of the grammar-school, for its 
final year. It seemed rather presumptuous to make 
the attempt, inasmuch as he had lost most of the year. 
But as in everything he undertook, he was also suc- 
cessful at this time. His papers came back from 
Albany, where they were examined, one marked twelve 
and the other fifteen points above the minimum 
required for passing the examination. Of course he 
was greatly pleased, as his success assured his entrance 
into the High School in the approaching autumn. 
The summer was passed in Europe, and chiefly in 



48 An Ail-Around Boy. 

a tramp with some congenial companions through 
Switzerland. 

Eeturning from Europe in September, 1888, he 
entered the Buffalo High School. He was then nearly 
fourteen years of age. Owing to his break- down the 
previous winter, he was not permitted to take the 
number of studies he desired. His parents wished 
him to do all his studying in school-hours, and to 
have it easy enough to give him no worry. As the 
weeks and months passed with no indication of trouble, 
he increased his work until with his outside employ- 
ments his time was once more fully occupied. 

He was reckoned among the best scholars in his 
class. Probably he would then have taken, as he 
afterward did in Newark, the first place, had he not 
been gently restrained by his parents from any 
approach to over-study. 

He thus describes his 

First Day at the High School. 

When I entered the High School, it was my misfortune 
to return from my vacation two weeks after the term 
had commenced. 1 Consequently my experiences were 
less varied than would have been the case had I entered 
at the beginning of the term. 

I well remember the eventful day. It was a fine, 
bright morning in September, at about nine o'clock. I 
approached the building on the Franklin Street side. I 
had never regarded it before from the view-point of a 

1 This was due to not getting home from Europe as soon as was 
expected. 



In the High School. 49 

prospective inmate, but had simply looked at it as one 
of our public edifices which had no special significance 
for me. On that morning it impressed me as being a 
fine, large, and imposing structure, — one worthy of the 
great city of Buffalo. 

As I came up to the building I began to consider how 
I should enter it. I did not wish to be conspicuous, so I 
went to the basement door that faces Genesee Street, 
and turned the handle. The door was locked ! Not to 
be daunted, I tried another door on the same side, 
approached by a short flight of steps, but was again dis- 
appointed. ' I hesitated a little before making a third 
attempt lest I should be arrested as a sneak-thief, but, 
allowing my zeal for an education to* overcome my fears, 
I courageously approached another door, only to find it 
in the same condition as the above mentioned two. I was 
a little bit discouraged ! Yet I walked around to Frank- 
lin Street again, and, boldly mounting the front steps, 
was about to attempt to gain admittance, when a small 
card, bearing these words, caught my eye : " Entrance 
on Court Street.'" 

I then began to think that if I was to receive any 
education during my youthful days, it was about time 
for me to get at least inside the building. Accordingly, 
I gathered up my scattered spirits, and started for Court 
Street. I marched up the steps with the air of a con- 
queror, yet half expecting to find this entrance also 
closed against me. But it was not, and so after trials 
and hardships which would have discouraged many an 
aspiring youth, I found myself at last in the High 
School ! 

Inquiring for the Principal, I was informed by the 
polite monitor that he was engaged in Chapel exercises ; 
and I was invited to take a seat in the office. There I 
found several others, who I presumed were upon the 

4 



50 An Ail-Around Boy. 

same errand as myself, but who, judging from their 
fresh and pleasant appearance, had not gone through 
with such trying experiences as had fallen to my lot. 

In about five minutes Professor Emerson 1 came in, 
and began to assign places and studies to the waiting 
scholars. My turn came last ; and as the boys' room on 
the second floor was full, I was assigned to the third- 
floor room, with Algebra and Latin as studies. 

Embarrassing as it was for me to walk in and take my 
seat before a room full of scholars, to be pointed out 
and laughed at as a "new kid," and to endure the 
usual programme of pin-thrusts and bombardment with 
paper-wads and blow-guns, I still managed to go through 
it all (remembering my heroism earlier in the day), and 
yet derive considerable pleasure and benefit from " My 
First Day in the High School." 

Comparing the heroic efforts of Lincoln, Garfield, and 
other great men to gain an early education (the result 
of which has been that their names and family histories 
are now published in Barnes' American History 2 ), with 
my struggles of that day, any person of sound mind can 
easily see that mine far eclipsed theirs, and therefore 
my name should be immortalized on the historic page. 
Undoubtedly this will be done when I write an account 
of the affair to Mr. Barnes, which I shall do when I 
get time ! 

Among his High School papers I find the following 
humorous resume of the first book of Xenophon's 
Anabasis, written "just for fun." The ridiculous trans- 
lations introduced were of course " grinds " on his 
classmates. 

1 The Principal of the school. 

2 One of the text-books in the school. 



In the High School. 51 

X. A. BOOK I. 

N. B. — Where translations appear, the author's name is 
given. 1 

We have completed the first book of Xenophon's 
Anabasis ! We have perused its contents long and 
thoughtfully, from that very ancient and worn-out sen- 
tence, "Two sons are born of Darius and Parysatis," 
down to " Thus, then, moreover, accordingly, indeed, how- 
ever, on the other hand, also, Cyrus turned his toes 

heavenward" (according to ). We wish, we knew 

the syntax of old man Xenophon's irregular ravings and 
the principal parts of his verbs, but have a slight suspi- 
cion that we don't. 

We have followed Cyrus in his idiotic wanderings 
over the then-civilized world until he met his death. 
During the long space of time in which he should have 
been confined in a private insane asylum, we have found 
him leading an emigrant caravan against his brother 
Artaxerxes, who held the throne of Persia. How full 
of inspiration (?) is the thrilling account of this expe- 
dition ! With what absorbing interest (? ?) do we read 
every detail of the journey, — of how Cyrus became 
bankrupt on account of lunatical promises, and was 
about to skip to — Canada, when Epyaxa, a Cilician queen, 
took pity on him and set him up in business again by 
appeasing each of his creditors (who were also his 
soldiers) with a large-sized stick of chewing-gum. 

Cyrus everywhere manifested his eloquence and 
smooth tongue. After he had secured all the cash pos- 
sible from Epyaxa, he got hold of her unlucky husband 
Syennesis, and by deceit and artfulness, mixed in with 
a few " gifts " such, as a tin watch with a brass chain, 

1 While retaining the translations, it was deemed best to omit 
names. 



52 An Ail-Around Boy. 

and a pair of Altaian's forty-nine-cent pants, he entirely 
fleeced the poor fellow, leaving him penniless and a 
beggar. Then, further on, when the Greeks became 
righteously indignant and amused themselves by throw- 
ing stones, boarding-house doughnuts, and other danger- 
ous missiles at their generals, Cyrus appeared on the 
scene with another of his flowery speeches, and calmed 
their wrath with the promise of an increase of wages. But 
the deluded soldiers never got it, for Cyrus conveniently 
died a short time before pay-day. Next we find the 
members of the expedition branching out into numerous 
wild-goose chases after "long-eared quadrupeds and 

large sparrows " ( ). Of course they could n't catch 

any, and so did n't have much to eat. But on the other 
side of the river there was a large city, containing plenty 
of provisions. The soldiers wanted to cross, but had no 
boats and could n't swim. So they devised this startling 
and original way of getting over. " They filled tanned 
skins with dried ivind, and then closed them and sewed 
them together, so that the water might not touch the 

wind " ( ). They crossed on these, and robbed the 

town of its eatables. 

But let us pass on, merely noticing the bloody prize- 
fight between Clearchus and Menon, which resulted in 
a draw, and dwelling for a moment upon the harrowing 
scene of the death of Orontes, who, after being beheaded, 
was chopped into nineteen pieces, and then was obliged 
to endure the horrible torture of being buried alive sim- 
ply because he had written a friendly letter, enclosing 
his chromo, to King Artaxerxes, his grandmother's 
second cousin. Then we come to the great battle, the 
final event in the life of Cyrus, in which he drew up his 
army, if such we can call it, of a few thousand Greeks, 
armed with broomsticks and shingle-nails, and attempted 
to kill several million barbarians, whom the king had 



In the High School, 53 

gathered against him. We know the result of this fool- 
hardiness, and the tragic death of Cyrus. 

Finally, a glance at the character of Cyrus may be of 
profit to us (but probably won't be). In nobility of 
disposition and effervescent liberality, he stands pre- 
eminent. When two of his principal generals stole a 
ship and deserted him, he let them go (because he 
couldn't possibly catch them), and said that he never 
liked to prevent a man from leaving him. 

What modern philanthropist could but stand abashed 
and hide his head in shame before that monument of 
generosity, Cyrus, who invariably, when he received any 
delicacy, took the best, and sent • the remnants to his 
friends, saying, "Cyrus was pleased with these, and 
therefore wishes you to partake of them " (i. e. the 
bread-crusts and turkey-bones). 

Yes, Cyrus was indeed " superior to all of his time in 
all respects," and is worthy to forever continue, with 
other heroes of past ages, to be held up before the 
admiring gaze of young America. 

But we feel obliged to dispute Mr. in his asser- 
tion (see first paragraph) that Cyrus is now in the enjoy- 
ment of heavenly bliss, and we fear that when 's 

time comes he will join Cyrus in a much warmer climate. 



Facsimile J of 



OF 



fit 



THE TORPEDO." 



Vol. I. Buffalo, N. Y., January, 1890. No. 8. 



Crack ! Crack ! Here they go, 
Spite of winter's frost and snow : 

Our Torpedoes gaily fly 
Just as well as in July. 

Snap ! Crack I Away with sadness I 
Here } s to Christmas mirth and gladness I 

Crack ! Snap I So we call, 
Happy New Year to you all. 

L. A. S. 



1 Except that the paper was printed with red ink. 



CHAPTEE VII. 



AMATEUR JOURNALISM. 



THE. " Mission Querist " was not altogether satisfac- 
tory to Ealph, chiefly because he was not its edi- 
tor. He felt himself unequal to the task of framing the 
proper questions, especially the new set which the 
second year of its publication would require. Con- 
sequently, after the twelve numbers for which sub- 
scriptions had been taken had been printed, the little 
monthly was discontinued. 

Its successor, " The Torpedo," made its appearance in 
February, 1889. This was also a monthly. Ealph 
was its editor, as well as compositor and publisher 
For a time he associated with him in its business 
management (the securing of a wider circulation) 
one of his boy friends ; but all of the typesetting, edi- 
torial and press work was done by Ealph. 

The subscription price was ten cents for three 
months. " Advertising rates, ten cents per space of 
1-J- by 2 inches & 25 cents per column for one 
insertion," with a liberal discount for three inser- 
tions. 

The initial editorial states : — 



5Q An Ail-Around Boy. 

We have started this little sheet in 
the belief that it will be a benefit to 
its proprietor and the world at large. 

It will be published monthly during 
the year 1889, at the low price of ten 
cents for three months. 

The advertising rates are also very 
low, and will be found profitable. 

Hoping you will favor us with a 
subscription and an advertisement, we 
are, 

Yours respectfully, 

The Editor. 

The following article, clipped from its' file, has a 
bearing on the subject of a preceding chapter : — 

Stamp collecting first became pop- 
ular about 1860, and its progress since 
that time is truly wonderful. 

The following seven countries were 
the first to issue stamps in the order 
named : Great Britain, Switzerland, 
Brazil, Trinidad, United States, Mau- 
ritius, and France. 

It is estimated, that there are over 
eighty thousand stamp collectors in 
the United States. 

In New York City alone there are 
probably fifty or sixty dealers in 
stamps. One firm has a paid-up capi- 
tal of $30,000 ; and the National Stamp 
Dealers' Association, which has just 
been formed, represents a capital of 
$500,000. 



Amateur Journalism, 57 

The postage-stamp was first used in 
Great Britain on May 6, 1840 ; Austria 
introduced the postal card in 1873; 
while the United States gave the news- 
paper band in 1857, and the East 
Indies introduced the telegraph stamp. 

There are nearly two hundred and 
fifty countries now issuing stamps ; and 
the total number of' all issues, both 
postal, revenue, and envelope, now ex- 
ceeds forty-five thousand, — for, in the 
superb catalogue of M. Moens, of 
Brussels (issued two years ago), 43,158 
stamps were minutely and accurately 
described. 

The following are among our boy 
friends in this city who are making 
fine collections of postage-stamps : — 

G B , A M , J 

S , E B , C P , 

S S , A B , W 

W , C M , and H 

W . 



There were several other amateur journals in Buf- 
falo ; and between the " Torpedo " and these " esteemed 
contemporaries " an unceasing though friendly war- 
fare was waged. The boys copied from the example 
of the daily press of the city, in which (particularly in 
two papers) bitterness and unbecoming personalities 
found a large place. Toward each other the youthful 
editors entertained only the kindliest feelings. 

Here are some of the compliments which the " Tor- 
pedo " pays its rivals : — 



58 



An Ail-Around Boy. 



We are glad to see that 
the is improving. Cas- 
ual reading showed only 
75 mistakes in the issue of 
Feb. 5th. We recommend 
Swinton's Grammar. 

The " Journal " accuses 

Mr. of being lazy in 

getting out his paper, hav- 
ing probably forgotten that 
it took a vacation of several 
weeks not long since. 

The following is the un- 
enviable record that the 

has made for itself : in 

the issue of Feb. 5, there 
were 75 errors ; Feb. 18, 45 
errors ; and Mar. 28, 85 
errors. This shows a large 
margin for improvement. 

The of April 6 con- 
tained only 80 errors ! ! 



Died Feb. 25, 1889. 
Died Apr. 6. 



The above names will be 
noticed by the casual reader 
of the Records of Amateur 
Journalism in looking over 
the long list of papers 
defunct since the first of 
the year. 

Some of these, the major- 
ity perhaps, were not worth 



the paper they were printed 
on ; but a few deserved a 
better fate than the sad one 
that awaited them, and 
struggled bravely to con- 
vince the cold and selfish 
world of their superior 
worth. But the world 
would not be convinced; 
and so they, like so many 
brave martyrs before them, 
died 

" Unwept, unhonored, and un- 
sung." 

We should think that the 

editor of the would 

rightly be in continual fear 
of a visit from the ghosts of 
Ananias and Sapphira, of 
Bible fame, because of the 
barbarous way in which 
their names are spelled in 
the September number. 
They have probably already 
arisen from their graves and 

are in search of 's scalp. 

If that spelling alone could 
not raise them from the 

grave, a couple of 's 

" free puns " would act as 
a lever. 

Too bad that the 

could n't find anything bet- 



Amateur Journalism. 



59 



ter to print in November 
than "The Trials of a 
Western Editor," for that 
article is an exceedingly 
mouldy chestnut. It first 
appeared in the early part 
of 'SS, and was then exten- 
sively copied all over the 
country. Even now some 



fourth-rate paper resur- 
rects the nuisance, and at- 
tempts to palm it off upon 
the unsuspecting public. 
We add that the December 

number of the was a 

very creditable issue to its 
printers, Messrs. Baker, 
Jones & Co. 1 



We close this account of the " Torpedo " with a re- 
production of one of its advertising pages, which will 
give a fair notion of the taste and presswork of our 
youthful journalist. 



1 A sly dig at the editor of the 
work. 



for not doing his own press- 



train. 



J. S. LADD. 

A FULL LINE OF 

HOLIDAY 
GROCERIES. 

562 Main St. 



Carl H. Schwiete, 



itw 



In professionellerCorrespondenz 
mit Deutschland, Frankreich und 
der Schweiz. 

Correspondence professionelle 
avec TAllemagne, la France et la 
Suisse. 

LAW EXCHANGE, 

BUFFALO, N. 7. 



STAR OIL CO. 

SELL ALL KINDS OF 

Baring arid 
Imbricating Gils, 

Bicycle Oils, 

SEWING MACHINE OIL, 

PURE SPERM OIL. 

Dudley's Family Safety Oil 
is the Safest and Best for fami- 
ly use. 

< »» m t — 

COR. SWAN & 

WASHINGTON STS 



Amateur Journalism. 61 

The " Polymnian " is the organ of the graduating class 
of the Newark Academy. Of this twenty-four page 
annual Ealph was chosen editor-in-chief for the Class 
of 1892. He had of course nothing to do with its 
presswork, and as a consequence we make no attempt 
to reproduce its appearance. We quote however two 
articles in it from his pen, — the first as a specimen of 
chaste and elegant English, and the second in the hope 
that it may influence our youthful readers to make 
the most of their educational advantages. 

"For the third time The Polymnian is presented 
to the scholars and friends of the Newark Academy. 
Begun two years ago by the Class of '90, it has been 
issued only at the close of the school year, its contents 
assuming rather the character of a review than of 
news. It is no easy task to prepare a paper which 
shall worthily represent such a large institution as 
the Academy, and the work that has been done dur- 
ing the past year. With a feeling of diffidence, there- 
fore, we have undertaken this labor, the results of 
which are embodied in the following pages. We trust 
that at least The Polymnian of '92 will not prove 
inferior to the previous numbers ; to the editors them- 
selves, and to those who have had a part in its compo- 
sition it will always be a pleasant reminder." 

" The great orator, Wendell Phillips, has justly said, 
'Education is the only interest worthy the deep, 
controlling anxiety of the thoughtful man.' It 



62 An Ail-Around Boy, 

behooves every student, therefore, as the time ap- 
proaches when he must either lay aside his books and 
take up his part of the cares and responsibilities of 
practical life, or continue his studies at one of the 
higher institutions of learning, to consider most care- 
fully the question, Does a college education pay ? 

" To this query we would emphatically reply, It 
does. We make this answer because we know that 
it is the aim of the college to promote, through per- 
sonal effort, the systematic training of all the mental 
faculties, especially the habit of concentrated atten- 
tion, in order that the mind may thus be prepared to 
do the best work of which it is capable ; that the 
college cultivates the powers of expression, both oral 
and written ; that it encourages friendships and com- 
petitions among fellow-students ; that it develops that 
independence and self-reliance which is so necessary 
for future success ; that it secures the influence of 
great teachers, who understand how to train other 
minds ; that it gives a man a broad outlook in life and 
enlarges his ideas ; that at the same time it impresses 
him with a sense of his own littleness, in the presence 
of the vast expanse of truth his researches bring to 
light, so that he may find out, with the scientist La 
Place, that ' what we know here is very little ; what 
we are ignorant of is immense.' 

" It is argued that classical education unfits a man 
for business ; but we fail to see how a student could be 
less successful in business life for having thoroughly 
prepared himself for it by a college course, than for 



Amateur Journalism. 63 

entering upon it with the meagre knowledge of a com- 
mon-school education. The old rhyme, which says, — 

1 How much a dunce that has been sent to roam 
Excels a dunce that has been kept at home ! ' 

is still true ; and we believe the average college man 
will be found to excel his self-educated rival in mental 
calibre and intellectuality as well as in self-reliance 
and bodily vigor. 

" Let the boy or young man who is trying to make 
up his mind whether to go to college or no, remember 
that 'education alone can conduct us to that enjoy- 
ment which is at once best in quality and infinite in 
quantity ; ' let him remember that education is not a 
mere disciplining of the intellect, but that it embraces 
the developing of the whole manhood ; then let him 
seize upon the opportunity of a college course, if such 
opportunity is offered to him, and if it is not, let him 
struggle to secure it. 

" We wish that all the youth of our land would rec- 
ognize the great advantages of a college course. Then, 
with an increasing proportion of college graduates, we 
should have more intelligent citizens, better laws, a 
better country ; for 

"T is education forms the common mind ; 
Just as the twig is bent the tree's inclined.' " 



A little nonsense noiv and then 
Is relished by the wisest men. 

Anonymous. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

A LITTLE NONSENSE. 

THE following letters, written by Ralph, will 
explain themselves. They are mainly about 
the " Torpedo " and its amateur rivals. The first two 

were addressed to P H. P , then living in 

London, England, though formerly of Buffalo, with 
whom Ralph became acquainted during his visits to 
Europe. The last is to his cousin, then enjoying her 
Christmas vacation in Pennsylvania. 

Oct. 21st, '89. 

Dear P : I intended to write to you as soon as 

I reached home, but have been very busy with school 
work, &c, and have had no time for writing. 

We had rather rough weather on the ocean com- 
ing home ; but the " City of New York " made a 
fast passage, — six days four hours and seventeen 
minutes. 

You know the lecturer at " Niagara," 1 that awfully 
solemn fellow ! Is he still there ? I enclose a picture 
of him which I cut out of an illustrated paper in Liver- 
pool. There was quite a long article, with illustrations, 
about the Royal Aquarium and Niagara. 

1 The cyclorama of "Niagara," then on exhibition in London, of 

which P 's father was manager. 

5 



66 An All -Around Boy. 

Did I show you a copy of a small paper which I 
print ? I don't remember whether I did or not, and 
I enclose the two latest numbers. 

I should be very glad to have you write something 
for it. A " London Correspondent " would be a big 
boom for it. You could write a fine article on " Lon- 
don," about " totties," 1 and such things. Or write 
about " Niagara," giving a few statistics as to the 
number of persons visiting it, &c. The articles should 
not be very long, — about 150-250 words. It would 
be a big thing for The Torpedo if you would write 
a letter every month, — a sort of correspondent, you 
know. 

I am going to make The Torpedo better than it was 
before, so that it will " knock out " 's . 2 

Do you know M C ? He is going into 

partnership with me in The Torpedo. 

There is a regular " gang " which assembles at 's 

every day, and they play a sort of a game of the " catch- 
me-quick " style. The principal object is for the boys 
to catch the girls and hug them as long and tight as 
possible, and vice versa. It is very amusing to watch 
them. I have the pleasure to add that I am not of 
that "gang." 

Don't forget to send something for The Torpedo, and 
do not be afraid that it will not be good enough. I 
know your native Buffalo modesty. Just send it on, 
and I will see about the rest. 

i Girls. 

2 An amateur contemporary. 



A Little Nonsense. 67 

Friday, Nov. 29, '89. 

Dear P (Foreign Correspondent, &c.), — Your 

first letter has been and is a big boom for The Torpedo. 
A great many people have said, " Who wrote that inter- 
esting letter ? " " Will another be written ? " " When 
will the next be published ? " &c. It is creating a good 
deal of interest among the boys, and a great deal of 
envy among our amateur contemporaries. 

In regard to the payment of your valuable services, 
I would state that we shall forward our check to you 
at once for $1000.00. I enclose a couple of copies of 
the December number ; also, a little story regarding a 
recent event (?). Hope you have survived since reading 

the September number of the , which I sent you. 

Your letter fitted into the second page of The Torpedo 
very nicely, except that I was not able to make as large 
a " splurge " for the heading as I wished. I intended 
to put, in large capitals, " Our Special European Corres- 
pondence;" but owing to the lack of space, I was obliged 
to be content with the plain " Our London Letter." 

For January, we intend to get out a fine number, 
with a cover, containing three pages of advertisements. 

Eemember me kindly to your parents. 

This is the " event " (?) to which I referred : — 

A Noted Capture. 

One of the most sensational and tragic events which has 

ever occurred in the history of New York State happened 

not long ago in the small town of Powersville, 1 N. Y. The 

facts, as nearly as we can ascertain them, are as follows : 

1 A common name among Buffalonians for Rochester, N. Y. 



68 An Ail-Around Boy. 

A desperate criminal had been for some time prowling 
around the town, committing all sorts of robberies, 
thefts, assaults, and even cold-blooded murders. He 
was developing into a second " Jack the Ripper." Every 
effort to capture him was without avail. Several prom- 
inent detectives had been secured from different parts of 
the country to " work up " the case ; but all their united 
efforts were unsuccessful, yet meanwhile the dreaded 
atrocities went on. At last, after months of work, a 
clue was secured, and after being diligently followed up, 
the criminal was captured and securely lodged in jail. 

At once the news spread throughout the town and 
surrounding country, and people of all sizes and ages, 
armed with clubs, pistols, and other weapons, assembled 
in front of the jail where the villain was secured. 

An attack was soon made upon the jail, and the jailer 
and guards overpowered, the keys obtained, and the 
prisoner led forth to his doom. 

Then a division of opinion arose as to how he should 
be put to death, for all were determined that he should 
have the most terrible and painful death that was pos- 
sible, in order that revenge might be thus taken for his 
many crimes. After considerable discussion, a committee 
of five of the most eminent men present was appointed 
to decide upon the manner of death. 

This committee debated long and seriously, but could 
come to no decision. Every manner of horrible torture 
that it was possible for human ingenuity to devise was 
suggested, but all were discarded as being too common- 
place and chestnutty. Something was wanted that 
would startle the whole world for its cruel and heartless 
barbarity. 

Finally, a gray-haired man arose and spoke as fol- 
lows : " Gentlemen of the Jury, I have had considerable 
experience in criminal trials and executions, and I think 



A Little Nonsense. 69 

that every method of execution which has yet been men- 
tioned is altogether too easy and merciful." (He here 
went into a detailed explanation of the modes of torture 
already suggested, and showed why crucifixion, burning 
at the stake, boiling in vinegar, &c, &c, were too simple 
and altogether too merciful as compared with the method 
he was about to suggest.) He then continued : " I have 
deliberated long upon this subject, and do now move 
that the present criminal be condemned to death by read- 
ing the September number of the ." 1 

Happy and sublime thought ! The suggestion was at 
once unanimously adopted upon a copy of the said Sep- 
tember number being shown around, and the result was 
reported to the awaiting multitude. There was wild 
cheering, and satisfaction regarding the decision was 
everywhere expressed. 

When the wretched criminal heard his impending 
doom, he (unhappy man !) fell upon his knees, and such 
a heart-rending burst of emotion has never been, or 
never will be, heard. He begged that his sentence might 
be deferred, that it might be changed to any other torture 
or death, that he might be stuck full of oil-soaked chips 
and these set on fire, slowly roasting him to death, and 
many other things, rather than be obliged to bear his 
present sentence. But the stern, hard faces of the vast 
multitude proclaimed no mercy. 

Then followed the dreadful scene : the prisoner, strong 
man that he was, trembling in every limb, was handed 
the dreaded instrument of death (the above mentioned 

September number of the ). With blanched cheek 

and trembling hand, he began slowly to read the " Euro- 
pean Letter." When, gasping and panting for breath, 
he reached the end of it, the pallid cheek and glassy 

1 One of the "Torpedo's" amateur rivals. 



70 An Ail-Around Boy. 

eye proclaimed the near approach of death. However, 
he was urged on by the frenzied crowd, and began to 
peruse the "free puns." 

Ah, the " free puns " ! The poor fellow never lived to 
finish tJierriy for with terrible struggles he started to read 
the first of the fateful two. Even the stony hearts of 
some in the assembled multitude were touched when they 
saw the heart-rending efforts, and heard the anguishing 
groans of the criminal during the terrible period of 
reading the first " free pun ; " and when the end was 
reached, with a terrific shriek he gave up the ghost. His 
body, disfigured and twisted out of recognition by torture, 
was buried in the " Potter's Field," and a notice was 

published, commending the of Buffalo, New York, 

to sheriffs, judges, and others, as the most efficient life- 
exterminator ever known to history. 

(To P. H. P. — I have just made a copy of this ; but I 

am rather afraid of sending it to the for fear its 

editor will make speedy arrangements for my funeral.) 

Office of The Torpedo, 

56 Allen Street, 

Buffalo, N. Y., Dec. 23d, '89. 

My dearest Cousin Ella, — As I sit here in my 
editorial sanctum, with my chair tilted back, a Duke's 
Best in my mouth (?) 1 and with the proud and defiant 
mien of a conqueror (referring to January Torpedo), 
I allow my thoughts to wander down into the Penn- 
sylvania backwoods, the bright land of kerosene, 
where I hope you are now enjoying yourself. 

1 Ralph never smoked a cigar or cigarette in his life. He had prom- 
ised his parents that he would not do so, and the testimony of his 
young friends proves that he was true to his promise. His parents had 
no fear, after his promise ; for he never deceived them. 



A Little Nonsense. 71 

We are out ! Amid the flourish of trumpets, the 
booming of cannon, and the grinding of our amateur 
contemporaries' teeth, " Our Holiday Number " of 
The Torpedo has been presented to the public. (For 
further particulars, see the copy which I send you 
by this mail). 

The "winter's frost and snow" advertised on the 
first cover page * have not arrived here at the present 
writing, but they will come in the course of time. 

Right here, before I forget it, I have a short (?) story 
to tell you, which I will call " A Wise Act." (Please 
don't expire until after you have finished reading it.) 
Here it is. 

A Wise Act. 

Not long ago there lived in a little country village of 
Western New York an old farmer. He was in very 
comfortable circumstances, being the owner of a large and 
fruitful farm, and had three sons of whom he was very 
proud. In fact, he loved each one so much that he could 
not decide to which he would give the farm at his death. 
But one day he summoned the young men to him and 
said : " My sons, I am about to launch my feeble craft 
upon the river of death, and I do not know how to dis- 
pose of the old farm, for I love each one of you as much 
as the others. So I have decided upon this plan : I will 
now give you each ten cents, which you will take and 
make the best and most profitable purchases with them 
that you can, returning to me to-morrow evening." 

Then the old farmer took his leathern wallet, and pro- 
ceeded to count out thirty cents, giving ten to each son. 

1 See page 54. 



72 An Ail-Around Boy. 

On the following evening, as had been appointed, the 
young men returned to their father, who said, speaking 
to the eldest : " Ebenezer, what have you purchased ? " 
Ebenezer said : " My father, I pondered long and seriously 
before expending my fateful ten cents, and at length 
bought a ' Pigs in Clover ' puzzle. " And his father 
replied : " Ebenezer, you are a son worthy of your father. 
You have done well. A 'Pigs in Clover ' puzzle will 
exercise your ingenuity, patience, and perseverance ; and 
if your constitution and intellect survive one hour's 
work on that puzzle, you will have proved yourself a 
great and wonderful man. P. T. Barnum, upon hearing 
of it, will at once engage you for his ' greatest show on 
earth,' at a probable salary of $10,000 a year." 

A smile of intense satisfaction began to creep over 
the features of Ebenezer, and quickly broadened to that 
remarkable grin which can be observed upon any Ger- 
man's face when, after a long absence, he is restored to 
his beloved lager. 

The old man then inquired of Augustus what use he 
had made of his cents (sense) ; and Augustus replied : 
"Father, I too did not squander my money without 
serious consideration, but I finally purchased a base ball 
and bat." 

His father, in congratulating him, said : " Augustus, 
you did wisely. Only practise diligently with your ball 
and bat, and it won't be long before you will be hired by 
the New York Base Ball Club, at a yearly salary of 
$15,000, and of course you will then become one of the 
most honored and famous men in our great Republic." 

Augustus gazed about him with a smile broad enough 
to contain an entire full-sized German pretzel, while 
Ebenezer quaked in his boots. 

The venerable father next turned to the youngest son 
and said : " Theophilus, tell us what you have accom- 



A Little Nonsense. 73 

plished." And Theophilus made this grand and noble 
reply : " Dear father, I did n't ponder worth a cent ; I 
simply harnessed the old mare to the buckboard, drove 
into Buffalo, went directly to 56 Allen St., and sub- 
scribed three months for THE TORPEDO:' And the 
old man, with the tears pouring down his furrowed cheeks, 
embraced Theophilus, and in a voice husky with emo- 
tion murmured : " My son, if I had a farm as large as 
Texas, with a windmill on it, it should be yours when I 
died." 

"—FINIS.— > 

Do you now, having read the above story, conscien- 
tiously declare that you can still- be reckoned in the 
number of the living ? If so, I will make you a 
Christmas present sometime. 

You ought not to have gone away until Saturday, 
for you missed a good deal of fun at school on Friday. 
We had a regular " soft snap," and all the boys felt 

" gay." I guess felt otherwise before the day 

was over. 

We had the regular chapel exercises first. Then the 
five hours of study came. They were shortened to 
less than a half hour each. After these came an inter- 
mission of fifteen minutes, and then we all assembled 

again in chapel. I enclose a clipping from the , 

giving an account of the exercises. 

The exercises were very pleasant, marred though 

they were by some of 's bad breaks. As I said 

before, the boys felt exceedingly "gay," and after 
each number of the programme there was a storm of 
applause, yells, stamping, and whistles that lasted 



74 An All-Around Boy. 

until got red in the face, caused by over-exertion 

in hammering on the bell and yelling at the top of 
his voice to " stop." Then would follow a most pathetic 
appeal to the boys to be quiet and orderly, &c, &c, 
as there were many visitors present, and so on, in the 
midst of which appeal some boy would let off a squeak- 
ing machine which gives an unearthly screech, or a 
little box which, when a button upon it is pressed, 
says " Mamma " in a loud shrill voice. These never 
failed to " bring down the house," and it must have 
seemed to those present as if Bedlam was let loose. 

I could n't describe . Perhaps you have seen 

enough of him to know how he behaves on such occa- 
sions. I will write you again, telling about the 
concert. Write me a letter (if you have time) telling 
how you are enjoying yourself. 
With best Christmas wishes, 
Your loving Cousin. 



CHAPTEK IX. 



WRITING COMPOSITIONS. 



Style! style! why, all writers will tell you that it 
is the very thing which can least of all be changed. A 
mart's style is nearly as much a part of him as his physi- 
ognomy, his figure, the throbbing of his pulse. 

Fenelok. 



CHAPTER IX. 



WEITING COMPOSITIONS. 



PROBABLY the thing most disliked in the school- 
work of boys is the writing of compositions. 
Ralph was no exception to this general rule, at least 
in his earlier years. I suppose that all of his studies 
put together gave him less trouble than these required 
essays. His father saw and appreciated his difficulty ; 
and not having forgotten his own early experiences in 
the same line, gave him the needed aid, — just enough 
to remove the difficulty, but never enough to relieve 
him from the necessity of independent and honest 
labor. He grew thus gradually to like the work, 
until the word "composition" lost all dread for him. 
His method was, after a subject had been assigned or 
selected, to study it until he had mastered it; then 
he would make out a plan for its treatment. This 
done, he would begin the work of composition. Hav- 
ing finished the writing, he would correct, change, and 
polish, with a view to secure the most finished style 
possible. 

Here, for instance, is a composition on " The City j 
a Menace to our Government," bearing date of Jan. 



78 An Ail-Around Boy. 

26, 1892. In connection with it, I find the following 
outline, which formed his " plan " : — 

Introduction. 
I. Growth of cities. 
II. Some of the special characteristics of cities. 

1. Foreign population. 

2. Centralization of wealth. 

3. Socialism has its home in cities. 

4. Corrupt municipal government. Saloons. 

I find also the first draft of this composition, with 
its many erasures, additions, and corrections. The 
finished essay is also before me, as it came back from 
the hand of his teacher. The professor's critical eye 
discovered in it but one word which needed to be 
changed. Ealph wrote "Here [that is, in the city] 
is the most extravagance;" the professor changed 
"most" to "greatest." 

The composition is marked " I," the highest mark 
given in the school, with the addition " Very good." 

Here, are some of his earlier compositions which I 
am sure will not prove dull reading : — 

Pins and People. 
When we see a pin lying upon the floor in a dusty 
corner, or trodden under foot upon the walk by the 
busy passer-by, how often do we pause in our hurry to 
stoop and pick it up ? Not very often probably. But 
as we have the leisure, let us do so now. Here is a 
pin whose head was broken off by some thoughtless 
man or boy, who was not aware how nearly he resem- 



Writing Compositions. 79 

bled the pin after he had thus broken it. Of what 
use is a pin without a head ? It will not hold any- 
thing, nor do the work for which it was originally 
intended. Many people are just like this pin. They 
are active and bright in appearance, but soon show by 
their silly words and actions that they are in the same 
sad plight as our unfortunate pin. 

But let us walk on, and our search may be rewarded 
by another pin, which we shall hope will be a better 
specimen than our first. Yes, there is one ! But it is 
badly bent and very crooked. We try to use it, but 
cannot do so. It slips and often comes out. Probably 
we have had experience with people of this kind. 
They are unsteady and not straightforward. These 
are the people who cannot be depended on to keep a 
promise, much less an appointment. How we detest 
such people and try to avoid all dealings with them, 
and how sad it is to notice with what frequency we 
meet them! 

In passing along we must keep a keen lookout on 
each side of the walk ; for we are now out pin-hunting, 
and must not let a single one escape us. If our eyes 
had not been sharp, we should not have seen that little 
old rusty pin, which has been dashed and beaten upon 
by storms for so long a time as almost to be driven 
out of our sight. However, we have captured our 
prize, and while we are looking it over a man passes. 
We glance up and see at once that this man is an 
exact representation of our rusty pin ; for he wears a 
surly, cross, sour look. We instantly put him down 



80 An All- Around Boy, 

as a self-willed man, one who will always have the 
last word. Our pin is rusty and difficult to use. The 
man is selfish and crusty. He will never get along in 
life smoothly, and will be a constant source of annoy- 
ance to those about him. 

We continue our walk, for we are not yet satisfied. 
After a long and fruitless search we are about dis- 
couraged, when we see lying in the middle of the walk 
and sparkling in the sunlight — what ? A bright, 
new pin ! We can but admire its smooth, bright shaft, 
strong head, and sharp point. It is easily used and 
does its work well. If a pin without a head, a crooked 
pin, a rusty pin, and a bright, new, perfect pin are 
lying side by side, which one do you choose ? Given 
a silly boy, an unsteady boy, a selfish, self-willed boy, 
and a gentlemanly, willing boy, which one will make 
the greatest success in life ? The answer is the same 
to both these questions, — the last. A bright, perfect 
pin and a pleasant, gentlemanly boy are alike in these 
respects. 

We recommend a pin-hunt to every one who has 
some leisure time, and hope he will secure as much 
pleasure and profit from it as we did in our short hour 
with " Pins and People." 

A pretty conceit is found in another of Ealph's com- 
positions about this time on the assigned subject of 

Cats. 
In the sleepy, quaint old town of Leyden, Holland, 
overlooking the cool and peaceful waters of one of its 



Writing Composition. 81 

picturesque canals, stands a large stone building, known 
to tourists as the " picture gallery." One hot summer 
day I wearily approached this building, followed by a 
crowd of Dutch boys, their clumsy wooden shoes clat- 
tering on the pavement, who evidently had seen very 
few foreign curiosities, such as they seemed to regard 
me. Noting the sign above the door, I entered the 
gallery, my object being not so much to see the 
pictures as to find a place of refuge and quiet 
" far from the madding crowd " of inquisitive Dutch 
boys. 

I roamed hither and thither through the various 
apartments, looking at the long lines of paintings, 
which consisted principally of portraits of old Burgo- 
masters and lords. These soon became monotonous. 
But still I wandered on, until I came to a small, half- 
dark room in a remote part of the building. I entered 
it, and took possession of the most comfortable seat. 
I began to gaze about me. There were several por- 
traits and landscapes on the low walls, but the picture 
which arrested my attention was that of a very wise- 
looking cat, comfortably seated in a cushioned chair. 
That this particular animal was far wiser than most 
of its kind was shown by what followed; for, as I 
looked steadfastly at the picture, the cat appeared to 
speak. What it said, translated of course into Eng- 
lish, was as follows : — 

[Here follows an interesting history of the feline 
tribe, the composition closing thus :] 

Suddenly I became aware that the squeaky voice of 

6 



82 An Ail-Around Boy. 

the cat had ceased. I jumped up, and, finding it to be 
past lunch-time, hastily departed from the building. 

Probably, after hearing this story told by the wise 
cat, you will unhesitatingly affirm that I was dream- 
ing. But so realistic was my dream, if dream it was, 
that I shall continue to believe that the tale was in 
fact related to me as above described. At all events, 
the cat spoke the truth, as I have since ascertained by 
studying the subject. 

Story of a Japanese Fan. 

During my vacation last summer I had the rare 
good-fortune to visit Europe. The trip across the ocean 
was made on that magnificent new floating palace, the 
" City of New York." Of course a single person could 
not become acquainted with a large number of the six 
hundred passengers on board during the short voyage 
of seven days, but he could not fail to know some. 
On the very first day of the trip I singled out a good- 
looking young Japanese, spoke to him, and we soon 
became good friends. I ascertained that he belonged 
to a family of considerable rank in his native country, 
and that, having just been graduated at Yale College, 
he was going to Europe to complete his education. 
He spoke the English language fluently, and was a 
very pleasant companion. 

One moonlight evening, as we were sitting in our 
steamer chairs upon the deck, looking at the beautiful 
scene and listening to the regular throbbing of the 
great engines as they drove us through the water at 






Writing Compositions. 83 

the rate of eighteen miles an hour, I asked the young 
man to tell me something about Japan, especially 
about its art productions. I wish I could remember 
one half of the interesting facts he told me that even- 
ing, but what little I do remember is somewhat 'as 
follows : " The Japanese, as a people, are not appreci- 
ated as they should be by the world, although in late 
years they have come into notice more than ever before. 
In America I think the Japanese are best known by 
their artistic productions. They are skilful wood- 
carvers, and make beautiful shell and lacquer work, 
but they excel in fan ornamentation. 

" I well remember a visit I paid, when I returned 
to Japan a year ago, to the Mikado's fan-maker. This 
fan-maker was a very pleasant old man, and was always 
glad to have visitors. I was conducted to a spacious 
summer-house, covered with a beautiful vine called 
wistaria. In the interior of the building were several 
men, seated upon the floor of matting, engaged in 
making fans, — not the common wood variety, but 
ivory with silk coverings. The ivory is first carved, 
and then pictures are painted on the silk, which is 
afterwards pasted to the ivory sticks. I suppose you 
have often wondered what those queer scenes and 
grotesque figures pictured on Japanese fans mean. 
The scenes sometimes represent historical events, but 
generally the popular legends or stories of the people. 

" After I had satisfied my curiosity by watching the 
fan-makers for some time, I was taken into a small 
inner room. There a man, said to have been the most 



84 An All- Around Boy. 

skilful fan-maker in the country, was just putting the 
finishing touches to a beautiful fan which was being 
made to order for the wife of the Mikado. The ivory 
sticks composing its frame had been carved in fantastic 
shapes many centuries before. 

" The scenes painted on each side of the fan were 
very beautiful. On one side was shown a large and 
beautiful garden, which contained many fruit-trees, all 
in full bloom. The central figure in this garden was a 
large statue of Buddha, and on the third finger of his 
right hand was a splendid ring, sparkling in the sun- 
light. From the base of the statue many winding 
paths ran in different directions, and the ring on 
Buddha's finger seemed to send a ray of light down 
one of these paths, at the end of which could be seen 
several ladies playing upon musical instruments and 
dancing. A young man, richly dressed and wearing a 
beautiful necklace of shining pink eat's-eyes, stood at 
a little distance from the statue, and was preparing to 
follow the lighted path. 

" On the other side of the fan was a scene of a 
different character. A small ship, with sails spread 
and flags flying, was sailing near the shore of a shel- 
tered bay. The bay was calm and placid, while shore- 
ward, far in the distance, a lofty range of mountains 
could be dimly outlined. On board the ship all was 
quiet. In the stern stood a young man, who was 
bending forward and gazing at the shore with eager 
eyes, as if he were about to discover something for 
which he had long been searching. 



Writing Compositions, 85 

" The explanation of these two scenes is, in brief, as 
follows. Very many years ago, a son, afterwards 
named Matsmai, was born to the Mikado of Japan. 
Suddenly one day a necklace of cat's-eyes was dis- 
covered upon his neck. It was not a common neck- 
lace, having no clasp, but composed of beads upon one 
whole golden string. An inscription was also found, 
telling that the prince must go in search of a princess, 
who would be the only one over whose head this 
necklace could be slipped. Accordingly, on his twen- 
tieth birthday, Matsmai obtained his father's consent 
to go in search of the princess who was to be his wife. 
So Matsmai sailed everywhere and wandered about for 
many years, but could not find the object of his search. 
However, he was to be rewarded for his perseverance ; 
for one day, as ha was standing in his ship and sing- 
ing, he heard a faint and far-away echo. At once the 
prince brought the boat to an anchor, and leaping 
out began to follow the echo, which led him for many 
days over hills and valleys. Finally he came to an 
immense statue of Buddha, and fell exhausted at its 
feet. When he awoke he again heard the echo, and at 
once started to pursue a winding path, lighted by a 
flashing ring upon the statue's hand. Following this 
path, he soon came in sight of a beautiful young princess, 
the necklace easily slipped over her head, and Matsmai 
carried her home in triumph as his bride." 

I cordially thanked the young man for his interest- 
ing tale, and said that I hoped all Japanese legends 
were as entertaining as his " Story of a Japanese Fan." 






86 An All- Around Boy, 

These compositions were written in the Buffalo 
High School, the one following in the Newark Acad- 
emy. It is marked " Group 1," but with the addition, 
" Good ; but it does n't show as careful work as previous 
compositions. You run a close shave f or c 1 ' on this." 
Probably, however, my readers will be more inter- 
ested in it than they would be in some of those which 
better suited the professor's critical taste. 

Diary of a School-boy's Day. 
Tatirrjv fJLev ovv tt)V rj^epav coBe Sceyevovro. 

" To get up or not to get up " is to me a question 
of grave importance. It confronts me every morning 
at about seven o'clock, after I have been rudely awak- 
ened from a sound sleep by a loud pounding on my 
door. For about five minutes I lie in bed trying to 
decide the question, and usually come to the conclu- 
sion that I need some more sleep. So I drop off into 
a gentle snooze, which lasts until a second pounding 
occurs at seven-thirty. Then I know I must get up, 
and after a rather hasty toilet I make my appearance 
at the breakfast-table. 

My breakfast lasts until a street-car comes in sight 
a little way up the street. If the car is delayed or 
late, then I eat more breakfast. When it does appear, 
I have plenty of time to collect my books, put on my 
overcoat and hat, and occasionally even have to wait 
out on the corner awhile before it comes along. 

This car is a sample of those run by the Newark 
Street Eailway Company. They all look alike ; and 



Writing Compositions. 87 

more shabby cars it would be impossible to find. I 
have seen street cars in many different cities, but I never 
found any which seemed to be so completely worn-out 
as these. Any other company would be ashamed to 
own them. 

Then the horses ! Nine out of ten of them look as 
though they were too old and feeble to put one foot 
before another, and yet they are beaten and driven 
until death brings a merciful relief. This state of 
things does not insure great speed to the passengers, 
and it is a long ride to the Eoseville stables, where I 
change to a red car. It always seems that no matter 
what green car I take it is sure to just miss a red car, 
and then I have to wait about ten minutes until 
another starts. 

A studious fellow can employ his time on the street- 
car in preparing lessons, but I find other things to 
occupy my attention. 

The red car carries me to within two blocks of the 
Academy, which I reach about five minutes before 
nine o'clock, or if earlier I busy myself in the class- 
room at my desk, making sure of the parts of lessons 
that I did not know very well before. 

At exactly nine o'clock we all go up into the assem- 
bly-room for short devotional services, and after these 
the school-work begins. 

My first recitation is Greek. The class is now 
laboring with Xenophon's Anabasis, and is endeavor- 
ing to master the irregularities of some of its idiotic 
constructions. 



88 An Ail-Around Boy. 

I am beginning to realize more and more, espe- 
cially on days when I don't know my lessons, the 
utter depravity of the originators of the Greek lan- 
guage. It is built on a plan eminently well calculated 
to make a fellow forget all he knows a week after 
he learns it. (For particulars, see Goodwin's Greek 
Grammar.) 

Algebra follows Greek ; and this recitation is inter- 
esting — to those who like it. As Abraham Lincoln 
once said, for those who like that kind of thing, it 
is about the kind of thing they would like. Then 
during the ten minutes' recess I can join the boys in 
the yard in making a slide, or engage in a cushion 
fight in the class-room. 

I have the next period for study, and then comes 
German, — the " awful German language." Our class 
is a beginning one, and at present we are deep in the 
mysteries of German gender and declensions. One 
day I imagine I know a little about the language ; but 
the next, after I have become all tangled up in the 
unfathomable mazes of its gender, I begin to think 
that I don't know much more than when I started. 

At recess most of the boys assemble in the lunch- 
room downstairs, and there stow away innumerable 
sandwiches, cakes, and bananas. The lunch counter 
is an admirable one, and the only fault I have to find 
with it is that razors are not supplied with the glasses 
of milk there dispensed. These instruments are 
much needed after the milk has been standing in 
uncovered glasses for fifteen minutes. 



Writing Compositions. 89 

Then, with full stomachs and a cheerful frame of 
mind, we go up to the Cicero Class, where we exhaust 
our vocabularies in trying to find translations for the 
bad names that the great orator used to delight to call 
Catiline, and worry our brains in deciding whether a 
certain subjunctive is temporal or causal. Cicero was 
a linguist, — there can be no doubt about that. He 
could hurl a string of invectives that would make any 
poor wretch like Catiline shiver in his boots. I recom- 
mend the reading of his orations to every one who 
wishes to enlarge his vituperative vocabulary. 

After another study-period I go down to the gymna- 
sium, where the next forty minutes are employed in 
exercising under the instructor. 

This brings me to the close of the school-day ; and if 
it happens that none of the teachers have been kind 
enough to invite me to visit them after school, I go 
home. 

The afternoon and evening are spent in home duties 
and in preparing lessons for the next day ; and when I 
retire, it is, I hope, with a little more knowledge than 
I had twelve hours before. 

Tavrrj^ /Jiev t?}<? 7]fxepa^ tovto to tcXo? iyevero. 



Up! up! my friend, and quit your books, 
Or surely you 11 grow double: 
Up ! up ! my friend, and clear your looks ; 
Why all this toil and trouble? 

Wordsworth. 






CHAPTEE X. 

VACATIONS. 

" r I ^HE advent of vacation is hailed with delight by 
the average school-boy, and I am not an excep- 
tion to this rule." Thus begins one of Ealph's com- 
positions on what in one of his letters he calls the 
"chestnutty" subject of "How I spent my vacation." 
He was indeed no exception to the rule. If any one 
ever enjoyed his vacations more than Ealph did, I have 
not chanced to meet him ; and yet in them all there 
was a higher aim than that of merely having " lots of 
fun." " I do not wish to convey the idea," he says in 
closing his composition, " that the yearly vacations are 
the worthy aim and end of a school-boy's career ; but 
they are bright gleams of sunshine in the busy time of 
his youth, and should be profitably used in preparation 
for his future work." 

He was especially fond of fishing and of camp-life, 
and from 'the time he was eight years old (with the 
exception of the two summers he was in Europe) had 
passed several weeks each year in this way. 

As a sample of the good times he thus had, we shall 
let him tell in his own way the story of an excursion 
he took in the summer of 1890 into the wilds of 
Canada in search of "speckled beauties," and their 
larger cousins, the succulent salmon trout. 



92 An All~Around Boy. 

American Camp, Lake Kahweambejewagamog, 
July 27. 

My dear Friend, — It seems an age since I left 
dear old Buffalo for these Canadian wilds, but in 
reality it was less than a week ago. And I have been 
so busy that until to-day I have n't had time to write 
but one or two postals. And what have I been doing ? 
Well, the way to answer that question is to begin at 
the beginning. 

About half-past five we arrived at Huntsville, the 
end of our railroad journey. Huntsville is a great 
city. It contains a few hundred people who live in 
shanties and log huts, and make a living by skinning 
the earth with scalping-knives. We had breakfast at 
six o'clock in the "hotel." I shan't attempt to de- 
scribe this breakfast, but will give one incident as a 

sample. asked for soft-boiled eggs ; the waiter 

went off, but soon returned with the answer/ " We 
have n't any eggs quite fresh enough to boil, but we 

can make you a very nice omelet." But did n't 

care for an omelet that morning. At about seven we 
started out on a little steamer for Dorset. The ride 
of five hours was delightful and rather exciting. All 

the guns were brought out and loaded. shot a 

loon, and has kept its skin for mounting. 

fired at a flock of ducks near the shore, and 

broke a window in a cabin half a mile (more or less) 
to the right. We arrived safely at Dorset, and after 
dinner started off over a six-mile portage from the 
Lake of Bays to Hollow Lake. It was the roughest 
road on earth. Our stuff was all- piled into a large 



Vacations. 93 

wagon, and we walked. First the road would lead 
over a lot of six-foot boulders and big logs and roots 
of trees, and then take a sudden drop into a mud- 
pond. It went up hill and down ; and if anything 
stood in the way, it didn't turn out and go around 
but climbed over by the shortest route. When Hollow 
Lake was reached, some of our bread was reduced to 
crumbs and a box of pickles was smashed up. At 
Hollow Lake we found the guides with two boats and 
three canoes, which we loaded with our stuff, and then 
got on top ourselves. We had a fine ride of eight 
miles across the lake to the American Camp, where we 
have been ever since. During the ride I got four 
salmon trout, the first I had ever caught. Since then 
I have caught twenty-nine salmon trout and two 
speckled trout. The lake is nine miles long, and con- 
tains only trout. We are in a permanent log camp, 
built and occupied (in the spring) by a Batavia party. 
There is fine fishing all around the camp, and you can 
catch a two-pound salmon trout at any time. 

Dorset, which has one hotel and a store, is twelve 
miles away, and the mail goes out from there only 
once a week ; I don't know what day, 

There is a fellow here who is going to Dorset to- 
morrow, and I must close up this letter now, so as to 
send it by him. I have n't said half what I wanted to, 
but I '11 write again soon and tell you about our camp 
life and experiences. 

This is not my regular note-paper, but it is all they 
had at Dorset. I forgot to bring some. 



94 An All- Around Boy, 

How is tennis, and did you win last Tuesday ? 

Tell all about yourself when you write, and what 
you are doing. Tell all you can and a lot more. 
We get mail three times a week. I thought of you 
especially on Friday, and hope you had a very pleasant 
time. 

Write soon and address the letter to Huntsville, 
Ontario, care of Captain Denton. 

American Camp, Lake Kahweambejewagamog, 
Canadian Wilds, Thursday, July 31. 

My dear Friend, — You have probably received 
my last letter, and I hope that an answer is now on 
its way. All news, and especially letters, is appreci- 
ated up here. We only have two or three books, and 
after finishing these we have begun on a lot of old 
newspapers which we found lying about. 

I wonder if you have had such fine cool weather in 
Buffalo as we have enjoyed here. But yesterday was 
a "scorcher," and I think the following incident would 
have applied very well. A certain fellow in one of 
our large colleges was appointed by his class to write 
a poem for some special occasion (I don't remember 
what, but that will not make any difference in the 
story). So he went to work, and after studying a 
long while he finally ground out the first two lines of 
the first verse, — 

" The sun's perpendicular rays 
Illumined the depths of the sea." 

Then he stopped, and went out for a walk to rest his 
over-taxed intellect. While he was absent, a class- 



Vacations. 95 

mate dropped in to see him ; and when the poet re- 
turned, he found that the first verse of his poem had 
been completed as follows : — 

" And the fishes, beginning to sweat, 
Cried, « Golly, how hot we shall be ! ' " 

We are comfortably fixed (for the backwoods) in a 
large log cabin (20 X 35 feet). One side is occupied 
by three bunks, filled with hemlock boughs, on which 
we spread our blankets. The guides sleep on the floor. 
On the other side of the cabin is a long table ; and 
hung around the room on pegs and hooks are fish- 
lines, guns, rubber coats, and old clothes. The only 
trouble with the cabin is that the roof is full of holes, 
and you are apt to awake in the night to find a cold 
stream running down your back. 

We have two flat-bottomed row-boats, or "punts," 
and three bark canoes. I tell you it is exciting to sit in 
the bow of a bark canoe that is loaded down almost to 
the water's edge, and skim along over the waves trying 
to calculate which of the big coming swells will wash 
over and give you a shower-bath. We go out fishing 
nearly every day, sometimes in Lake Kahweam 1 and 
sometimes in the smaller lakes that are all around us. 
All of them contain salmon or speckled trout or both. 

We catch our fish mostly by trolling with live 
minnows, which have to be caught with a very small 
hook and worms. (The worms from your garden 
were the best in the lot, and I caught the first fish 
with them.) We catch mostly salmon, weighing on 

1 Abbreviated for " Kahweambejewaganiog." 



96 An All- Around Boy. 

an average two pounds, and there are a few speckled 
trout. We got one speckled trout, weighing four and 
a half pounds, on a " bobbin," which is a piece of wood 
shaped like a tenpin, with about fifty feet of line and 
a minnow for bait. 

Then there is a night line, which we expect to catch 
some big salmon on. It is a heavy line, stretched over 
a deep place in the lake, with each end attached to a 
large buoy. From the large line hang fifty or more 
smaller baited lines, which dangle about in the deep 
places and tempt the big fish that lie on the bottom. 

We eat fish three times a day, and it requires only 
six large fish every meal to supply the demand. Of 
course we don't eat much ; but the guides, you know, 
have very large appetites. 

When we tire of fish, we can have fresh frog's-legs and 
venison. There is n't much around here that we don't 
get. But there is a camp of Buffalo fellows about a 
mile away, and they have had a hard time in subsist- 
ing. When they first came up here, they knew nothing 
about fishing, had hired no guides beforehand, and 
camped on a lake for two weeks where they got one 
fish, and had all their tinware smashed and nineteen 
pounds of butter eaten by a " flock " of fierce cows. 
Then they had sense enough to move to this lake, and 
are having better luck. They take turns in cooking, 
and most of their last bread they had to use for ballast 
and sinkers. 

Our mighty hunter now bears the proud title 

of " The Loon Annihilator," because he chased around 



Vacations. 97 

for an hour or so a young loon less than a month old, 
and, after firing about fifty shots at it with his little 
rifle, finally killed it. We are going hunting after 
44 mutton" to-morrow. There is a fine of at least $25 
for every deer killed, and so we speak of it as " mut- 
ton" to conceal our law-breaking intentions. But 
what can they expect ? A fellow has got to defend 
himself when attacked by a deer ! 

got excited the other day, when he was told 

that we might see a deer on a new lake that we were 
going to ; so he rushed ahead to get the first shot. 
When we arrived he stood on the shore in some thick 
bushes, and raised his hand and whispered : " Sh-h-h-h ! 
Deer ! Whew ! ! " Then he began to bang away at 
an old stump on the other side of the lake. He did n't 
come within nineteen rods of the stump, but continued 
to shoot for several minutes after we had called to 
him, "Don't kill the stump!" One of the guides de- 
scribed his shooting thus : " If he don't get what he 

goes after, he fetches something else." But does 

n't get discouraged, and pops away at everything from 
a mosquito up. 

By the way, I must not forget to tell about the 
mosquitoes, for they form a large element in our 
existence They are large, numerous, and not at all 
bashful either. At night we put on about a pint of 
"mosquito oil," "warranted' to keep them off; but it 
only seems to serve as a sort of sauce, and they bite 
all the harder. We sleep with our firearms, and kill 
the mosquitoes by the thousand ; but the trouble is 



98 An Ail-Around Boy. 

that it takes two cartridges to " drop" a common-sized 
one, and uses up our ammunition very fast. Soon we 
shall be out of ammunition, and then we '11 have to let 
'em bite. Clubs and other weapons have no effect. 
Only a well-directed ball will do the work. 

Our fish record is about one hundred and twenty-five 
or one hundred and fifty so far. I head the list with 
forty-three salmon and three (2-pound) speckled trout. 
We have n't yet caught any fish as large as a certain 
salmon one of the guides (said he) got, which " lowered 
the lake nine inches " when he pulled it out ; but we 
hope to before long. 

My cousin tells me that she saw you and the other 
J. P. C.'s down at Falconwood last week Friday (the 
25th). 

I send you a sprig of wintergreen, which is found 
in some places here ; also a queerly marked clover- 
leaf. They are in good condition, and green now ; but 
I don't know whether they will keep or not. 

We are enjoying ourselves immensely ; but I shall 
be very glad when I get back and begin to wield my 
tennis racket again. 

Eemember me to all. 

Buffalo, N. Y„ Monday, Aug. 11. 

Dear Papa, — I just got back from the Canadian 
trip on Friday. We started on Monday, July 21, 
and arrived in camp Friday evening. We first 
went to Toronto, and there took a train for Huntsville, 
about a hundred miles away, passing through the 



Vacations. 99 

Muskoka district. We rode all Tuesday morning on a 
steamer about thirty miles to a small place called 
Dorset, where we had dinner, and then walked over a 
six-mile portage, while our baggage and supplies were 
carried over in a large wagon. The portage ended at 
Lake Kahweambejewagamog (this is the Indian name, 
— get your life insured before you try to pronounce 
it), where we found our three guides with boats and 
canoes waiting for us. Then we had a fine ride of 
eight miles on the lake to our camp, arriving there 
about eight o'clock. 

The party consisted of Eev. H W , H 

B. W , Eev. J. L. F , and Eev. F. S. F of 

Buffalo, Eev. A. C. D of Stirling, K J., and myself. 

We expected two or three others, including Prof. 
F ; but they could not go. 

We had the best guide in the region and his two 
boys, with three canoes and two flat-bottomed row- 
boats, or "punts." Instead of tents, we occupied a 
lumberman's camp, which is only used in the winter 
and spring, except by camping-parties. Our guide, 
Eussell, furnished the camp outfit and cooking-uten- 
sils, while the provisions we brought from Toronto 
with us. 

And the fishing ? Whew ! Salmon trout and speckled 
trout, big fellows and lots of them (for this season of 
the year). The lakes of that region only contain trout, 
no black bass, pike, or other common fish. The trout 
are caught mostly by trolling with live minnows. Our 
camp was only a stone's-throw from the lake (Hollow 



100 An All- Around Boy. 

Lake is its English name), and within a radius of ten 
miles there were more than a dozen other smaller 
lakes, all containing speckled trout or salmon or both. 
Then there were several good streams, near by for fly- 
fishing. I tell you, Lake Kahweambejewagamog is 
the place to go for sport ! The best fishing-time was 
in the evening, from half-past five to half-past seven, 
and we never failed to catch some every time we went 
out. I had my usual good luck, and caught more than 
any of the others. I got sixty-one salmon trout, aver- 
aging about two pounds, and four big speckled trout, 
two and a half pounds each. I have a life-size draw- 
ing of one of them, on birch-bark. Talk about appe- 
tites ! I never ate so much in my life in the same 
time before. We had fish at least twice a day, and 
it required six large salmon every meal to satisfy 
us. Then we lived a great deal better all around than 
we did six years ago in Georgian Bay. 1 

When we first arrived we bought a quarter of fresh 
venison from a man who lived near by with his fam- 
ily. Then this same man owned a cow, and we took 
three quarts of milk from him, morning and night. 
Once in a while we varied our fish diet with frog's-legs. 
Big, whopping bull-frogs were plentiful in a swamp 
about half a mile from camp, and could be easily shot. 

bought a little rifle and two thousand cartridges 

before starting. It was a little dandy, and would carry 
as true as a large Winchester up to one hundred yards. 
It was just the thing for frogs, and H and I popped 

1 Ralph's father was a member of the camping-partj^ that summer. 



Vacations. 101 

over fifty one morning with it. Then we had plenty 
of other provisions. Fresh bread, made by the guide's 
wife at his house, seven miles away on the" lake ; tea, 
coffee, and chocolate ; fresh butter and new potatoes ; 
and wild raspberries and blueberries were to be had 
for the picking. Was n't that " scrumptious " ? 

Altogether, we must have caught over two hundred 
trout. The largest salmon weighed twelve pounds, 
and the largest speckled trout four and a half pounds. 

It was only hard luck that kept us from getting a 
deer or two, and breaking the law of Canada. We 
went out after deer three or four times, and each time 
the dogs started up two or three, but they did n't come 
within shooting distance. 

I started out with the intention of having a good 
time, and I did. I went into everything for all it 
was worth, and as a result I have come back in fine 
condition, looking like an African mulatto and with 
the appetite of a starved dog. 

Now I will tell you why I did not stay longer. Tn 
the first place, the trip cost more than any one 
expected. Guides, boats, and especially provisions 
were expensive, and extra expenses were large. I 
started away from Buffalo with fifty dollars ; and the 
entire trip, for the two weeks and two days I was 
there, with railroad fare, cost forty-five dollars. I came 

home with Eev. Mr. F , who had to be here for 

Sunday. If I had stayed until this week Tuesday, 
when the others start for home, it would have cost 
me five dollars more, and that would n't have left me 



102 An Ail-Around Boy. 

anything when I got back to Buffalo. (My next check 
is n't due until the 22d.) Uncle Mac sails for home 
the 27th of this month. 

The latest from your party is from Lucerne. I know- 
that they are all having a splendid time with you at 
the helm. Eemember me to all of them. I shall stay 
here until you get back from Europe. Having a fine 
time. All send love, and hope to hear from you soon. 

Your loving son, 

Kalph. 






CHAPTEE XI. 



IN NEWARK ACADEMY. 



He was a scholar, and a ripe and good one; 
Exceeding wise, fair-spjoken, and persuading. 

Longfellow. 



CHAPTEE XL 



IN NEWARK ACADEMY. 



IN the autumn of 1890 Kalph was sent to the 
Newark (N. J.) Academy, his father having re- 
moved to Orange, four miles distant, to take charge 
of the Central Presbyterian Church in that thriving 
suburban city. 

His printing-press, the " Torpedo," and all its belong- 
ings were sold, its editor wishing to settle down to 
hard work in the new school, whose hundred years of 
life had given it a wide reputation for thorough and 
scholarly instruction. The only outside work he did 
during the two years that followed was to take lessons 
on the piano and guitar, becoming in that time a pro- 
ficient player on the latter instrument. 

From the first he was in love with the school. His 
teachers commanded his respect, both from their high 
character and from their unvarying thoroughness. No 
teacher ever gained in his esteem either by being easy 
in discipline or by permitting scholars to be superficial. 
He caught at once a new inspiration, and determined 
to do, as he expressed it, his " level best." 

His reports tell very clearly the story of his success. 
That you may understand their system of marking, it 
is necessary to quote their — 



106 An All- Around Boy. 

Explanation of Groups. 

" Group 1 includes those whose work is of the high- 
est excellence, — a distinction usually reached by not 
more than one or two in a class, and frequently by 
none. 

" Group 2 is made up of pupils whose work, while 
not perfect, is still so excellent that it is decidedly 
above the average of good work. 

" Group 3 indicates the average of good work. A 
student classed in it deserves commendation. 

" Group Jf. comprises those whose work is unsatis- 
factory. 

" Group 5 includes those whose work is bad. 

" Pupils conditioned are not classed in any group." 

In his monthly reports Ealph had all together eighty- 
four of these group-marks. Of these sixty-six were in 
Group 1, nine were in Group 2 -f- (that is, better than 
2 but not quite up to 1), seven were in Group 2, and 
two were in Group 3. These latter were each in elo- 
cution ; but in this, his weakest point, he was rapidly 
improving, his last elocution mark being 2 +. 

His examination reports tell the same story of ex- 
cellence. In each of them he is ranked in the first 
group. 

In answer to an inquiry whether this record had 
ever been surpassed in the Academy, Dr. Farrand, 
the head-master, wrote : " Ealph's record is, with one 
exception (and that only a narrow margin), the highest 
that has been made in the Academy. This, however, 



In Newark Academy. 107 

brings out another of his strong traits. In study 
Ealph worked for the higher object of thoroughly 
mastering the subject, leaving his marks, as a sec- 
ondary matter, to take care of themselves. Had 
he * worked for grade,' he would have raised his 
record." 

His marks for " deportment " were uniformly one, 
with a single exception, when he fell to two. His 
vivacity and love of fun evidently for once got the 
better of his respect for the order of the schoolroom. 

He bore his honors with remarkable modesty. He 
never put on airs. He never showed that he felt him- 
self better or brighter than any of his classmates. In 
fact, he seemed wholly unconscious of the fact that 
he was the best scholar in his class. He treated every 
one with respect and kindness. As a consequence he 
was the most popular boy in his class. Every one 
liked him. He had been in the school but a short 
time when he was urged to take the presidency of 
his class ; but he declined, on the ground that as 
a new-comer among them the honor should go to 
another. The second year his class insisted on making 
him its president. He consented only after talking 
the matter over at home. 

All the honors of the class were at his disposal, — 
the willing tribute of his classmates. The only other 
positions he could be prevailed upon to accept were 
those of manager of the Academy's base-ball nine, and 
editor of the " Polymnian," the organ of the graduating 
class. 



108 An All- Around Boy. 

In June, 1891, he passed his "preliminaries" for 
entrance into Princeton College, and then hurried off 
to Buffalo to spend a well-earned vacation. His final 
examinations were taken a year later. 

The Princeton alumni residing in New York City 
offer a prize of one hundred dollars for the best en- 
trance examination passed in that city. Two years 
before a Newark Academy boy had taken it, and its 
professors naturally wanted the pleasant experience 

repeated; accordingly they urged Ealph and L 

G , his nearest rival in the class, to compete for 

the prize. In this examination preliminaries of the 
previous year did not count, the competition covering 
all the requirements for entrance. Ralph had been 
working very hard in his studies, as editor of the 
" Polymnian " and manager of the base-ball team and 
president of his class, and as a consequence did not 
feel equal to this extra strain. To please his teachers, 
however, he undertook it. The examination lasted 
two days. Ralph held out, although he was nearly 
sick, until the last day, when, having finished the 
geometry paper, he was obliged to give up and go 
home, leaving algebra and arithmetic untouched. The 
failure in these did not affect his entrance, for they 
were among the " preliminaries " of the previous year, 
but it ruined his chance for the prize. This he cared 
little about, for he was one of the few boys who studied 
for an education rather than for prizes and honors. 

Three months later his father felt a special interest 
in ascertaining what he could about this examination, 



In Newark Academy. 109 
and in answer to his inquiries learned that L 



G had divided the prize with another competitor. 

A most kind and courteous letter from Professor 
Winans, of Princeton, contained the following : — 

" I send you herewith the entrance papers themselves 
which your son wrote in Latin and Greek. (The English 
paper has been destroyed.) These are among the few 
very best of all who have entered, where many were 
good. We do not grade minutely entrance papers, ex- 
cept where they are in competition for prizes, and his 
sickness in New York put him out of the contest. The 
1 A-B ' in blue on back of the Greek paper is a private 
mark of my own, indicating a paper of the first class. 
Re-reading the paper now carefully, I find it nearly per- 
fect, — only a few trifling errors, some of these evidently 
slips of the pen. The same, I understand, is true of the 
Latin paper, — the instructor remarking on the special 
excellence of the translations : ' Papers fair and unblotted 
like his own young life.' " 

Professor Winans calls attention to the excellence 
of Ralph's translations. And well he might ; for 
while preserving the exact meaning of the original, 
and holding true to its grammar, they were in their 
way models of pure and idiomatic English. These 
translations, though the work was not required in 
school, he carefully wrote out; and they are now 
among the precious treasures in the " corner " de- 
scribed in the first chapter of this book. Among 
them is here and there an attempt at blank verse, 
as, for instance, — - 



110 An Ail-Around Boy. 

The Iliad, Book III. Lines 82-94. 

" Kefrain, Greeks ! Hurl not the spear, my chiefs ! 

For Hector of the glancing helm will speak," 

He said but this ; nor was the fight renewed, 

But quickly they were silent and gave heed; 

And Hector spoke between both parties thus : 

" Hear now from me, ye Trojans and ye Greeks, 

What Alexander, for whose sake was roused 

Fierce strife, proposes here to undertake. 

He orders, first, the Trojans and the Greeks 

To lay aside their shining armor fair 

Upon the bounteous soil of Mother Earth ; 

Then he, with Menelaus, dear to Mars, 

Alone, between both hosts, will combat wage 

For Helen and the wealth that with her came. 

He who may conquer and the stronger prove, 

Let him take wife and all and homeward go ; 

But let the rest of us make friendship firm 

With those sure oaths which sacrifice cements." 

The Iliad, Book III. Lines 191-202. 

But when a second time, the aged man 

Espied Odysseus standing there, he asked : 

" Who is this hero ? can you tell, my child ? 

In stature he is less than Atreus' son, 

But broader shoulders, and with mighty chest. 

His armor lies upon the bounteous earth, 

While he, ram-like, strides through the ranks of men ; 

As to my mind a thick-fleeced ram would go 

When he moves through a herd of snow-white sheep." 

Then Helen, sprung from Zeus, made answer thus : 

" That is Laertes' son, Odysseus wise, 

Born in the rocky land of Ithaca, 

In wiles and prudent counsels very skilled." 



In Newark Academy. Ill 

Commencement Day for the Class of 1892 in the 
Newark Academy was on the 14th of June. As presi- 
dent of the class, it was Ralph's duty to preside, 
after the delivery of his salutatory, and to introduce 
each of the speakers who followed. This he did with 
a dignity and grace which at once commanded the 
respect and gained the affection of all present. To his 
mother Dr. Farrand said at the close of the exercises, 
" You ought to be proud to be the mother of such a 
boy." Many strangers sought opportunity to express 
the same thought. 

A few weeks later, under date of Aug. 27, 1892, 
the Rev. George S. Bishop, D.D., of East Orange, N. J., 
in writing from London to Ralph's father, said : " I 
remember on the occasion of the Commencement of 
the Newark Academy with what a beautiful blending 
of modesty and dignity Ralph bore himself. All pre- 
sent were charmed with him, and I am now glad that 
I took him by the hand and congratulated him on his 
success. It was with a peculiar pleasure that we 
thought of our own dear boy [Dr. Bishop's son was in 
the Class of 1892] with a class of young men so prom- 
ising in every way as were those who looked forward 
to going to Princeton. Among them your Ralph was 
facile princeps" 



First on thy friend deliberate ivith thyself. 
Pause, ponder, sift ; not eager in the choice. 
Nor jealous of the chosen ; fixing, fix ; 
Judge before friendship, then confide till death. 

Young. 



CHAPTEE XII. 



BOY FRIENDS. 



THE lines from the poet Young which face this 
chapter were the closing words of Ealph's salu- 
tatory upon graduating from Newark Academy. As 
the class was about to separate, his last thought 
was concerning " Friendship, and the Value of Good 
Friends." " A true friend," he says, " is one forever. 
Great care, then, is necessary in choosing our friends." 
This was the principle upon which from earliest 
childhood he had acted. I have never known a person 
so careful regarding his friendships. A boy of low 
tastes and vulgar habits, a boy who was profane or 
obscene in his talk, a boy who did not keep himself 
clean in person and in morals, could find no place in 
Ralph's heart or confidence. Indeed he carried his dis- 
like of such boys so far that in his earlier years many 
of them also disliked him. I remember talking with 
him once on this subject, and showing him that the 
Christian spirit was one of love even toward those for 
whom we could have no respect ; that by politeness 
and kindness we might win them to better ways, 
though we might never care to make them our inti- 
mate friends. The talk was not wasted on him. The 
boys who before thought him "stuck up" began to 

8 



114 An All- Around Boy. 

say that he was " a pretty good fellow, after all." But 
he was as careful as before concerning those whom he 
took into the inner circle of his friendship. 

The list of those whom he regarded as his friends was 
never a long one ; but they are a choice set of young 
fellows, whose superiors it would be difficult to find. 

Ealph possessed, partly by nature and largely by 
cultivation, the qualities which make a boy popular 
among boys. He loved sports. He was open, true, 
manly. Little boys liked him, for he never bullied 
them. Boys of his own age liked him, because while 
they respected him for his character and ability they 
saw that he was as truly a boy as they were. Older 
boys liked him, because the maturity of his judgment 
and his manly ways placed him on their level ; in 
fact, most of his intimate friends were considerably his 
seniors. 

On August 7, 1892, the mother of one of Ealph's 
classmates wrote : " How many times I have heard 

L say with school-boy ardor, ' Ealph Green has 

not a fault that I can discover' ! " Such seemed to be 
the opinion of both his classmates and his teachers. 

The following letters may throw some light, so far 
as letters can, upon certain phases of character which 
made him so popular among the boys who knew him : 

My dear Will, — Now that the great game 1 is 
over and we have had time to review all the points, 
we can see how Princeton failed, and how much 

1 The foot-ball game between Yale and Princeton, Thanksgiving 
Day. 



Boy Friends. 115 

superior Yale's training had been. But Princeton 
played a fine game, and with the same men back 
again next year she will be heard from. It was a 
shame that you would n't come out to Orange Thurs- 
day evening, and I still think that your personal 
appearance was the principal reason for your refusal. 

How ridiculous we must have looked, standing there 
on that corner in the rain, and wildly waving our arms 
above our heads, and gesticulating in our vain efforts to 
persuade each other to go to Brooklyn or Orange ! 

Well, I am sl chump ! I forgot to pay you for my 
ticket. I thought of it once or twice during the game, 
but I did n't want to pull out my purse there in the 
rain, and postponed it until we should get on the 
elevated going home. During the ride down town my 
attention was so taken up by that gang of toughs and 
the heated discussion with you that the matter entirely 
escaped my mind. 

Shall I send the money to you or to George? By 
the way, what is George's address in New Haven ? 

Leap Year Day. 

My dear Will, — Your two letters came last week. 
Glad to hear that those pictures were not a dead failure. 
Hope they will turn out to be some good, if only to 
pay you for the trouble of taking them. I shall be 
interested in seeing the results. George and I should 
have restrained our mirth until after the cap was 
replaced. 

Our idiotic letter to Milo has been "going the 
rounds," I guess. Wid, at least, has seen it. Have 



116 An Ail-Around Boy. 

you received an answer yet ? What in the dickens 
does " sockdolager " mean ? I can't make it out. 
Please enlighten me. 

Some school-books are waiting for my inspection, so 
I must close. Kemember me to George when you 
write. Yours as ever. 

March 3. 

My dear Will, — The pictures came on Tuesday, 
and your letter yesterday afternoon. 

Thanks awfully for the pictures. I think you did 
very well indeed to get as good pictures as those are, 
considering the difficulty of sitting motionless for three 
fourths of a minute and how much we did move. 
George managed to keep his head quite still, and it is 
a good picture of him, I think, although his hands are 
rather " hazy." As for the single picture, I don't see 
where I ever got that expression, and I evidently 
winked too much. 

After all, our great letter did not have a fatal effect 
upon Milo. But every one has not Milo's strong con- 
stitution, and the result when he showed it to his 
Prof, was serious indeed. I am very sorry to have 
been in part the cause of such a tragedy, and I am sure 
that nothing was further from my innocent thoughts 
while I was composing those mysterious sentences. 
Thus do our good intentions often miscarry, and our 
best-intentioned words are the cause of misery and 
woe to others ! (K B. This is copyrighted. All in- 
fringements punished to the full extent of the law.) 



Boy Friends. 117 

By the way, I just got a letter from George this 
A. M. His part in our composite letter was dis- 
covered, for he said he had just heard from Milo in 
answer to the letter he " wrote from Brooklyn " (as 
Milo said). Milo asked George for my address. He 
did n't say that he thought I helped compose that 
letter, but he might have showed it to Wid or some 
one else who could recognize my handwriting. 

I am going to write to George this afternoon, and 
I '11 send him Milo's letter, as I suppose you would 
do so. 

The idea of your loring me by writing so soon ! I 
might say the same thing at the end of this letter, but 
I won't. 

January 14. 

My dear Wid, - — The week that has passed since I 
came home from Buffalo seems about like a month. 
The time just drags, and school requires a greater 
amount of work than it ever did before. 

Will D. is coming out here to-morrow. We are going 
to take in the amateur circus given by the Orange 
Athletic Club in the evening, and he is going to stay 
over night with me. We three fellows had a jolly 
time in our stateroom on the trip from Buffalo to 

New York. B and E , two Yale fresh, were 

on the train. We retired at the early hour of one A. M. 
We went into the smoking-room for the porters to 
make up our berths, and when we suddenly returned 
we found them frisking around in our hats and ulsters. 
So when we went to bed we carefully placed our 



118 An All- Around Boy. 

watches, money, and other valuables under the 
mattresses ! 

also folded up his trousers and put them under. 

(This explains the beautiful crease he always has.) 
But we were not robbed, and arrived safely at our 
destination. 

Our school banjo club — three banjos and two 
guitars — appeared on Monday at the anniversary of 
the school literary society. We played the " Invin- 
cible " and the " Quickstep." If you would like a new 
banjo piece, try the " White Star Line March." I will 
send it to you if you say so. You can easily learn it, 
for it is written both in the usual music form and in 
a •" simplified " method, which any one can read. There 
is a rather dreary prospect ahead in school. Not a bit 
more vacation, except Washington's Birthday, for three 
whole months. 

How are you yourself, old fellow, in these days 
when so many people are sick ? 

I have been feeling rather " rocky " lately, and have 
not been at school for two days. 

Write me as soon as you can find a little time. 

Yours, Ealph B. G. " Tags." 

January 27. 

My dear Wid, — Your letter arrived yesterday. 
Glad that you have recovered from the grip. I can 
sympathize with any one who has it. I hope that 
" the fashionable disease " has wholly left " the crowd " 
by this time. 






Boy Friends. 119 

About two or three weeks ago my father and two 
other gentlemen went to Princeton, to see about 
securing rooms for their sons next year. It is rather 
early to do this, I know, but they were rewarded by 
being able to make a choice from a large number of 
desirable rooms. There are several reasons why it 
is n't advantageous for freshmen to room in the college 
buildings, so our " paters " got rooms for us on the 
third floor of one of the buildings (private) out in 
town. There are three of us, and we have a big study- 
room, and two bedrooms adjoining it, — one a double 
and one single. 

I wish it was decided that you are to go to Prince- 
ton. I should like to room with you immensely. 
Even if we could n't room together (and I think that 
could be arranged) you could be in the same house 
with me. Papa says that on the second floor of our 
house there is a fine single room for five dollars a 
week, — a very reasonable charge. (Our three rooms 
cost fourteen dollars.) You can get rooms at almost 
any price, high or low. Can't you decide to go ? Even 
if your family does move out West (as I hear they 
expect to do), why, Orange is not far from Princeton, 
and I should want you to come home with me for 
all the short vacations, and for over Sunday now and 
then. 

Is there any influence that can be brought to bear 
upon your mother (and family) that may lead her to 
decide in favor of Princeton ? I will send her a 
trunkful of documents to show that Princeton is the 
best college. But she can easily find that out with a 



120 An A 11- A round Boy. 

little inquiry. I 'd give anything to get you down 
there next fall, and I know that you would be charmed 
with it before you were there two days. We freshmen 
must expect to work when we get there, for they say 
that the first year is the hardest of all. 

I have just received a copy of '• Bric-a-Brac " for 
this year, — a fine book. It is published yearly by the 
Junior class. 

To-morrow our school, the old Newark Academy, 
celebrates its centennial. The banjo club is to play 
both in the morning and afternoon. 

Where did you send to get the " White Star Line 
March " ? Let me know if you don't get it, for I can 
easily send you a copy from here. As soon as you get 
that " Quickstep " " down fine," I wish you would send 
back the music to me. I borrowed it, you know, of a 
fellow in Orange. 

There is n't anything I 'd like better, Wid, than to 
make you a visit at Easter. I think it 's a big " skin ; " 
but the only vacation we have begins on Friday, April 
15th, and lasts until the next Tuesday. 

I wish we had only two general exam's a year, as 
you do, — one in January and the other in June. But 
we have three, hang it ! — one at Christmas, and another 
at Easter, besides the one in June. Now those Easter 
exam's come April 12-14, so I could n't possibly get to 
Buffalo before the 15th. Perhaps I might be able to 
skip some school the next week. I have n't dared to 
mention the subject yet to my father and mother, for 
fear that they would have a fit. I '11 have to " spring 
it on 'em " when the time conies. 



CHAPTEE XIII. 



GIRL FRIENDS. 



Not for a crown would I alarm 
Your virgin pride by word or sign, 
Nor need a painful blush disarm 
My friend of thoughts as pure as mine. 

Samuel Ferguson. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

GIRL FRIENDS. 

LIKE most boys, Ralph began when he was about 
fourteen to think girls, at least some of them, 
very nice ; but he was as careful in his selection of 
friends among them as among boys. 

Well do I remember a conversation I had once with 
him. I need not repeat the whole of it further than to 
say that I sought to impress upon him the importance 
of never doing a dishonorable thing with any girl, of 
never saying a word or performing an act which he 
would not be willing to have both his and her parents 
hear or see. 

From my knowledge of him, I am sure that no 
word or act of his ever brought a blush to any girl's 
cheek, or suggested a thought which she might not 
fearlessly tell her mother. It could not be otherwise, 
for he was as pure-minded as any girl. 

He did have such good times with the girls ; but 
we shall let his letters to some of them speak for 
themselves. 

September 12. 

Dear J. P. C.'s, — If you had been standing on 
Main Street, Buffalo, at the Terrace, last Tuesday, 
about 6.30 p. M., you might have seen a sad-faced, 
hayseed-looking fellow wending his weary way down 



124 An Ail-Around Boy. 

Main Street toward the Lackawanna Depot, pushing 
before him a rather battered Columbia Safety, and car- 
rying a jointed fish-pole, that was continually making 
its appearance through the many holes that adorned 
its well-worn cloth case, and a very ancient umbrella 
(once silk, but long, long years ago the silk disappeared, 
leaving it a beautiful ashy-gray tint), which looked as 
if it had gone through the French and Indian War (to 
say nothing of the Eevolutionary and others), and 
had descended to him from his great-great-grandfather. 
Well, this youth walked slowly down the street, ever 
and anon producing a large bandanna to wipe away 
the briny tears that trickled down his cheeks, until he 
reached the depot, where he checked his trunk (also a 
family heirloom), and proceeded to get his wheel on 
board the train. He wanted to give the baggage-man 
half a dollar, so that he would take good care of the 
wheel on the journey to New York ; but when he came 
to look over the contents of his pocket-book, he found 
he had just forty-six cents and a lead nickle. "Alas! 
Is all lost? What shall I do?" he thinks. Ah! 
an inspiration ! He buys a copy of that literary fraud, 

" The Buffalo ," from a newsboy, gives him the lead 

nickle, and receives back four U. S. copper-heads. Saved ! 
The bargain with the baggage-master is concluded, and 
the youth seeks his bunk in the emigrant car. 

Perhaps you can guess who this youth is, or rather 
was. 

About ten seconds and a half before the train left, 
Mr. Ed. E , dressed in his best suit of clothes and 



Girl Friends. 125 

a new silk hat, rushed in, and we jumped on the train 
and found our section in the sleeper. 

At exactly seven o'clock to the second, the engine 
whistled, and we started on our way. 

There were no friends to see me off, so I did not feel 
called upon to weep ; but I do say that I felt mighty 
badly at leaving old Buffalo. 

In the car we met a Mr. E , from Toronto, I think, 

an oil man, and a friend of Mr. D , who was going 

to New York to meet him. Mr. E had a long gray 

beard, wore a gray " stove-pipe " hat, two feet high by 
actual measurement, and looked every inch an Amer- 
ican nabob. He had a couple of valises, and several 
tin cans, of various sizes and shapes, full of oil ; and 
some of the people in the car who glanced curiously at 
them seemed to think they might contain nitro-glyce- 
rine and dynamite also. Everything went smoothly 
for a little while, and I was busily engaged in reading 

a paper, sitting just across the aisle from Mr. E , 

when suddenly there was a terrific concussion ; and I 
was thrown violently against the side of the car, and 
if the car had not been a new and strong one, it would 
certainly have been blown to pieces. As it was, every- 
thing was shaken up, and all in the car expected to be 
immediately expressed into eternity by the shortest 
route, thinking that part of Mr. E 's oil and dyna- 
mite had gone off, and the rest was going soon. Then 
amid the general confusion (several women fainted), 
Ed. E mounted a seat, and said : " Ladies and gen- 
tlemen, calm yourselves ! there is absolutely no danger ! 



126 An All- Around Boy. 

If you feel another shock such as the one we have just 
passed through, do not be alarmed, for it is simply my 
friend Mr. K sneezing one of his gentle sneezes ! " 

After some time quiet was restored, and Mr. E 

promised to give at least five minutes' notice before he 
sneezed again. He did so several times, but by brac- 
ing ourselves and holding fast to something, we 
managed to avoid any serious injury. 

This was the only dangerous incident of the journey ; 
but then there was " Cyclone.' 

" Cyclone " was a dandy. He was also the colored 
porter of the Pullman sleeper. He was a big fellow, 
over six feet high, who looked as if he could eat a 
common-sized man without any Worcestershire sauce 
and call for more ; and we called him " Cyclone " 
because he seemed to be everywhere at once, and, 
when he began to make up a berth, you could n't see 
anything but a flying mass of blankets, sheets, and 
pillow-cases for about ten seconds, and then " Cyc " 
would step forth and say, (( Bat bed's all ready, sah ! 
Turn in!" 

Arrived at Hoboken, I chained my wheel up in the 
depot, and we took the ferry over to New York, and 
waited around there until noon, when the " City of 
New York " arrived. 1 There was an exciting time on 
the dock when she came, and many amusing experi- 
ences with custom-house inspectors ; but I will tell 
about them s'm'other time. 

1 Mr. and Mrs. J. P. Dudley, with Ealph's father and other friends, 
were on this steamer. 



Girl Friends. 127 

September 22. 

My dear Grace, — Being anxious as to your pres- 
ent (and future) welfare, I will inquire if you have 
eaten any more pears of late. The following poem is 
dedicated to you by the author: — 

There was a young lady named Grace, 
Who became deathly pale in the face, 

After eating six pears 

She stumbled upstairs, 
Saying, " I guess I am out of the race." 

Moral. — The pear is a very nice .fruit, but should 
not be eaten in bulk. 

I was very much surprised and delighted Thursday 
morning to find that the everlasting rain had stopped 
and fine weather had taken its place. To commemo- 
rate this great occasion, the editor of the New York 
" Mail and Express " composed a the following mighty 
poem, — 

*' Well we '11 remember, 

'T was in September, 
Date of the eighteenth, ninety the year, 

The rain was restricted, 

As Dunn predicted, 
Startling and strange though it may appear." 

Friday I went with Papa to Newark, four miles on 
the street cars, and arranged to enter the Newark 
Academy this week. It begins to-morrow, and I shall 
be rather glad to go back ; but I am of the same opinion 
that you were, that " I could stand a month more of 
vacation." 

1 We presume the lines were composed by Ralph himself. 



128 An Ail-Around Boy, 

What kind of a tennis racquet does the J. P. C. 
favor ? I wish you would hold an election and vote 
on it. My dear old " Casino" is becoming rather 
aged, and I am going to get a new one very soon, and 
I want to get one that meets with popular approval. 
Personally, I like the " Sears " best, don't you ? 

A New York paper recently contained an article on 
" Why mosquitoes are thin." For my own part, I 
think that they are thick enough around our house. 

Here is a " pointer " on the peach crop : Customer, 
(to Broadway merchant) : " Give me fifty cents worth 
of real Delaware peaches." Merchant: "We're not 
slicing peaches this season, ma'am. I '11 sell you a 
whole one for $1.25." 

I am glad to hear of the turtle's prosperity. Have 
you found a name for him yet? I don't think that 
there is any danger of his expiring from lack of proper 
nourishment as long as his present appetite and the 
supply of flies lasts, and I think that you could profit- 
ably spend all your spare time in catching flies and 
pickling them for winter use. But, in my opinion, 
just the thing for the turtle to thrive and get fat on 
is a Jersey mosquito, and I will preserve some in olive 
oil or vinegar, if you say so (and I can find a cask 
large enough to hold them). 

Failures of boatbuilding firms are very frequent 
here now, and notices like this are often seen : — 

Auction Sale 
Of bankrupt stock of Dryup & Co. To close out our 
immense stock of boats, rafts, and floating houses, built 



Girl Friends. 129 

specially for the recent deluge (which so suddenly and 
unexpectedly stopped), we shall offer them for a few 
days at 1\ cents on the dollar, and thereafter to the 
highest bidder. 

You are bearing out my good opinion of you, when, 
like a good girl, you go home early to study your 
Latin lesson. 

The next time I write I shall have something to say 
about my new school. 

Your sincere friend. 

September 28. 

Dear Ada, — I have been waiting until you got to 
your new school before writing to you, and I suppose 
that now you, as well as I, have completed the first 
week of school work. I don't know what you thought 
about it, but /, when I got home Friday afternoon, felt 
as though I had done a month's hard work on a farm. 
I am doing so much hard studying nowadays that I 
shall undoubtedly wear myself out very soon. Then 
I shall get a leave of absence and go on a vacation to 
Buffalo. See ? 

Last Monday (the day before school opened) I went 
to New York, and among other things I got a new 
"Sears" tennis racquet and a lot of school books. 
The fact that that was the last day of vacation weighed 
heavily on my mind, and made me very sad and pen- 
sive ; but you can ascertain how I looked in the follow- 
ing sketch, which was (not) published in a New York 
daily paper recently : — 



130 An All- Around Boy. 

An Incident on a Ferry-boat 

(as related to the reporter by Mr. Hezekiah Turnip). 

Me an' mi sun Jonathun wuz settin' in wun uv these 
here ferry-botes whot scoots betwixt York an' Jarsey so 
litenin' farst thot it only takz harf an our tu git acrost. 
Wal, we uns wuz a settin' thar, gazin' round at the 
sumshus kaliderscop winders an' whoppin' mirrers, when 
all tu onct we seed wun uv them dressed-up sitty fellers 
with a biled shirt an' a pare uv them check- her-bored 
pants onto him an' a thunderin' lowd kravat whot u kood 
here to milz off. Wal. this feller hed ni onto 'steen 
bundles, an' the biggest on um wuz six feat hi an' wuz 
marked skewl books, an' he looked ez tho he hed jest 
effisheated at the fun'ral uv the larst frend he hed on 
urth. Purhaps he hed bin tryin' tu eet sum uv thot 
bored-in-house skeeter hash whot I heerd tell on. Onny- 
ways he 'peerd tew be powerful sad, an' the ducks into 
the bote wuz pityin' him an' wipin' ther i's. Sum sed he 
wuz a base bawler wot hed got hiz walkin' papers, an' 
sum sed he wuz en escaped loonytick an' the blew-coted 
duck sittin' nex' him hed collared him an' wuz totin' him 
back tu hiz cage, i watched him fer an offul while, an' 
jest ez we got tew the dok, an' ev'rybudy wuz a risin' up 
tu go, my feelins got the better uv me an' with teres in 
mi i's i sed tew him, iz ther ennj^thing i ken dew fer 
yew, yung feller, an' he ansurd in a spechural voiz: 
" No, oh, no, my caz iz parst releaf. Skewl, the Newerk 
Acaddemmy, begins termorrer." Then he left, but hiz 
mownfull vizzage will harnt me fur menny a nite. 

I will tell you about my new school, the Newark 
Academy, in another letter, after I have had time to 
know more about it than I do now from only four 
days' experience. 



Girl Friends. 131 

Have you seen any of the letters I have written to 
the J. P. C. in Buffalo ? If you have, then you have 
heard about the Jersey mosquitoes, for they play such 
an important part in our existence here that I can't 
help talking about them whenever I write a letter. 
Well, in the first place, all the individual mosquitoes 
that one would naturally suppose could be found in 
the whole State of New Jersey seem to be congregated 
in the immediate neighborhood of our house. The 
mosquitoes we had up in Canada .this summer could 
only be killed by two well-directed rifle-balls; but 
fortunately these Jersey skeeters are a little smaller 
than that, and can be slaughtered without much diffi- 
culty with a good-sized charge of buckshot. We have 
screens on all the windows and doors, but that does n't 
do a bit of good. A lot of hungry mosquitoes will 
come up to a screen on an open window and demolish 
it (or if the window is closed, they will break that) with 
files, saws, and hatchets, and then they will sail in. I 
tell you it is a hard fight to exist here Each member of 
the family goes around heavily armed with shot-guns, 
&c, and the ammunition bill is a heavy item of expensa 

If I had time, I would describe one of the numerous 
exciting hunts we have here, but I will do that in 
another letter. 

Mosquitoes are booming now, as usual, and mosquito- 
stock commands a high premium. The company that 
sends around wagons three times daily to collect 
mosquito-carcasses and supplies them to New York 
boarding-houses for hash and other delicious dishes is 
making itself independently rich. 



132 An All- Around Boy. 

November 18. 

Dear Ada, — We have a new servant. She 's a 
dandy, — recently imported from Sweden, and can't 
talk a word of English, or couldn't when she first 
came. So when you ask for some coal for the fire, 
she '11 bring you a bowl of bread and milk ; and if 
you want the potatoes at the table, you '11 get the 
pickles or the olives every time. Once we had some 
trouble with the cat, and, after chastising it, banished 
it to the kitchen downstairs. This was at dinner. 
Presently the supply of bread ran out, and Mamma 
gave her a knife, and, pointing downstairs, said " Bread," 
and made a motion as if to cut something, meaning the 
bread. But she evidently thought it referred to the 
cat; for soon after she had descended into the lower 
regions, the most hideous yells were wafted up to us, 
and we rushed down just in time to rescue the poor 
animal from an untimely end. It is surprising, for a 
common servant, how high-toned and aristocratic her 
tastes are, for she never breaks anything but the " best 
dishes " and the most costly china. (N. B. This joke 
is not original.) 

Please don't say anything more about your being 
" ashamed to send such a looking letter," for it makes 
me more ashamed of my own. 

All the family wish to be remembered to you. I 
don't know of any one for you to remember me to 
except , and that would n't be proper (?). 

Please write again soon to 

Your sincere friend. 



Girl Friends. 133 

The following is from a letter congratulating a 
young friend upon her birthday : — 

Sejrtendecem. 

And it caine to pass that in a large and populous city 
there dwelt a maiden with her mother and brother. And 
it came to pass that as the maiden increased in years, 
she waxed exceeding great in wisdom, so that the fame 
of her knowledge was spread throughout the great city. 
And in the halls of learning in the mighty Seminary she 
surpassed all the other youth of the- city, ofttimes con- 
founding the instructors with answers the like of which 
had never been heard before. 

Likewise her face was of wondrous beauty, the freckles 
whereof were as the sands of the sea. And in the play- 
ing of the game of lawn tennis her skill was fearful and 
wonderful to behold ; and many a youth, " who came to 
call, remained to play tennis/' * 

And it came to pass that as the days rolled by, the 
maiden reached the exalted age of ten and seven years. 
And then it was that her friends gathered themselves 
together and made merry with feasting and dancing. 
And great was the joy thereof. 

January 4. 

Dear Carrie, — I received your letter on Wednes- 
day afternoon, and was glad to hear that you were 
pleased with the pin that I sent you as a small 
remembrance. 

I was very sorry that the J. P. C. could n't be here 
at my little party Thursday evening, but of course it 
could not be so. 

Was n't it awfully hard luck to get hurt just before 

i Adapted from Goldsmith. 



134 An All- Around Boy. 

Christmas ? If it had been at any other time, I 
should n't have cared a bit. 

Yon must have had a gay time last week, but 
to-morrow we shall all have to go to work again at 
school. Don't you dread it ? I do. Be sure to send 
me one of your photographs just as soon as they are 
finished, won't you ? I think Gertrude's new ones are 
fine. 

Well, G. B., 1 and believe me 

Your sincere friend. 

458 Baid Street, Oradge, Dew Jersey, 
Bodday, Decebber sevedth. 

Dear Gertrude,' — I have just fished out of by 
" letter drawer " ode frob you bearidg the date of 
October twedty-first, add dot beidg able to fidd ady of 
a later date I ab obliged to codclude that this ode is 
the last I have received frob you, although it does d't 
seeb possible that it is as lodg ago as that. 

The tibe is flyidg very fast, add I hope it will cod- 
tidue to fly udtil Christbas. Thed, if I ab id Buffalo, 
I wish I could bridg it to a sudded stadstil for ad 
iddefidite ledgth of tibe. 

Although by father has dot said positively that I 
could go to Buffalo, yet I ab albost sure about it, add 
always speak of by " goidg to Buffalo "as if it were 
decided. 

Will D. has beed coudtidg od goidg to Buffalo the 
week before Christbas, add he was very buch disap- 
poidted the other bordidg whed the pridcipal of his 
1 Good-by. 



Girl Friends. 135 

school adcloudced that school would dot close udtil the 
day before Christbas, idstead of the eighteedth, as stated 
id the catalogue. But Will is goidg to try to get ad 
excuse add cub the eighteedth with George. 

He wadts be to go thed, too, but it will be ibpossible, 
for I have " exabs " at school the first three days of 
Christbas week. 

A persod passidg by 74 Subber Street od the after- 
dood of the day before Thadksgividg was surprised, I 
suppose, to see a large sigd, hudg od the frodt piazza, 
bearidg these words : — 

" Odly Day of Exhibitiod ! ! 

Hours 3-5 P. B. 
The Great Wodder, 

G L. Y S 



Just returded alive frob the Bassachusetts 

Idstitute of Techdology, Bostod, Bass. ! ! 

Cub in dow add 

avoid the rush. 

Adbissiod odly by special ticket sigded by a bebber of 

the J. P. C. crowd." 

I guess Gub had a pretty slick tibe id Buffalo. Has 
ady ode heard frob hib sidce he returded ? 

H H 's weddidg occurs this week, does d't 

it ? I suppose you girls are goidg to it, are d't you ? 

As you have probably doticed, I have a very hard 
cold id the head, add I cad hardly bake byself udder- 
stood. It bust be albost paidful for you to listed to be, 
so I will close. 

Now dod't say that, because Christbas is odly two 



136 An All- Around Boy. 

weeks off add I ab cubbidg thed, you wod't write ; 
for, followidg last year's exabple, I bay kill byself or 
sobethidg, add thed I should like to hear frob you. 

Please tell Wid that I have d't beed able to get that 
piece of bad jo busic for hib yet, but I '11 try agaid, add 
if I cad get it at all he '11 receive it this week. 

Sidcerely your friedd. 

P. S. I have asked Papa to direct this letter, for I 
was afraid that if I tried to do it, the post-office 
authorities would d't be able to bake adythidg out of 
it, add it would thed go to the Dead Letter Office. 

March 20. 

Deak Gkace, — Yesterday, when the postman 
brought your letter, the family were at dinner. It 
is impolite, I suppose, to read a letter at the table, 
but I couldn't wait, so began. In about a minute one 
of my smart little sisters sang out, "Kalph's got a 
letter from a girl." I asked her how she knew that, 
and she said, " 'Cause you 've got a smile on your face, 
and you would n't smile if the letter was from a boy." 
Pretty soon another little sister, who knows altogether 
too much for so small a child, said, " I think it 's from 

a girl in Buffalo, who lives next to 's house." Like 

G-. W. in not being able to tell a lie, I was unable to 
deny this statement, and the whole family thereupon 
began to tease me. You see how I have to catch it. 

That athletic exhibition on Friday night was fine. 
I was " not in it " in a gymnastic way, but was kept 



Girl Friends. 137 

busy nevertheless. I had charge of most of the 
arrangements, was an usher, and played on the banjo 
club, which played four pieces, although it is only 
down on the programme once. Our first piece was 
encored, and we also played for the marching and 
club drills. 

The big " gym " was crowded. We put in as many 
seats as possible, but still lots of people had to stand, 
and the running track overhead was full of fellows 

from the lower classes. My two chums, A— and 

K , had parties from Orange, as well as I, each 

chaperoned by our respective mothers. 

Have you ever seen an exhibition of this kind ? 
There was some fine work done, especially in the 
tumbling and pyramids. I send you a programme, but 
you can't get much idea of it from that. The names 
of the fellows I have marked are those that live in 
" the Oranges." 

April 26. 

Dear AlliE, — As you can easily imagine, I had a 
perfectly slick time in Buffalo, and enjoyed every 
minute I was there. 

Can you imagine how I feel to-day, studying hard 
with school work ? I said " studying hard," for so 
it seems to me, although I really have n't done much. 
It is impossible. I keep thinking about the last ten 
days, — wishing that I could have them over again. 
"But I shall get settled down to work again soon. 

How many of "the crowd " are going to A F 's 

party to-night ? Or was it last night ? Did n't you 



138 An Ail-Around Boy. 

tell me that " James Eussell Lowell " is your subject 
for your graduation essay ? Well, there is a fine 
picture of him and also one of his poems (new, I 
think) in the May number of the " Cosmopolitan." Also, 
in an article " Concerning Certain American Essay- 
ists " in the same number, there is something about 
Lowell that you will want to read. 

When you see that magazine, read carefully a certain 
poem in it (page 26), and see whom it makes you 
think of. Tell me who it is, and I '11 tell you if I 
agree. 

Oh, say, Allie, I meant to ask you if you would let 
Grace give me that Kodak of you ? I should like very 
much to have it, as I have n't any Kodak of you. Grace 
has two, but would n't give me one, partly because I 
did n't have your permission, and partly because she 
did n't want to part with a picture of you. Will you 
let me have it ? 

Sincerely your friend. 

May 17- 

Dear Allie, — Thank you for your fine letter, which 
came a week ago last Saturday. 

So you did n't expect me to write to you so soon 
after leaving Buffalo. Well, I knew that the sooner I 
wrote, the sooner I should hear from you. See ? 

What a snap you girls do have, — getting out of 
school at eleven o'clock ! I wish I could do that. 
But it 's just the other way with me. As the end of 
school draws near, work increases, until now out of 
seven periods of forty minutes each I have only one 



Girl Friends. 139 

to myself. The school is way off in Newark, and I 
don't get home until half-past three. Then there are 
usually about six lessons to study. Consequence is, 
my time for anything else is mighty small. 

There are only three more weeks of actual school 
after this one, and I guess I can stand it as long as 
that. 

You can just faintly imagine how much I should 
like to be in Buffalo on the 16th- of June. 

I suppose you know now just about when you are 
to start for the West this summer. When is it ? 
Would I see you if I came to Buffalo early in July? 

There is just a chance that I may do that, — the P 's 

and Dr. S want me to go again with that party 

to the old stone house near Crystal Beach. A little 
later I want to go to Canada with Ed. 

Tud's party must have been slick. 

Yes, of course I really want one of those Kodak 
pictures of you. Grace said she would give me one 
of the two she has, but I did n't get it. 

The reason why I don't " go for " Grace for that 
Kodak of herself is because I have one of them already. 
Do you know where I got it ? 

You are going to give me one of your graduating 
pictures, are n't you ? I should like one very much 
indeed. How soon will they be done ? 

Your friend. 



Te totum in Uteris vidi (I have seen thee through and 
through in thy letters). 

Cicero. 



CHAPTEE XIV. 

SELECTED LETTERS : FIRST YEAR. 

GOOD correspondents are rapidly disappearing. 
The telegraph, the telephone, cheap postage, 
the rapid deliveries of the postal -service, and more 
than all, the hurry and rush of modern life are driving 
out of existence the old-fashioned letters, filled with 
gossip, news, and sentiment. There seems to be little 
time and less disposition to do more than to state in 
the briefest possible way the business in hand, and to 
send it on its journey with a formal " yours truly." 

Ealph was not this kind of correspondent. To 
him a letter to an absent friend was like a talk with 
him, — not to be hurried to a speedy end, not a dis- 
agreeable duty which must be performed, but the best 
possible substitute for a face-to-face chat. As he 
loved his friends, and enjoyed being with them, so 
in their absence he delighted in writing to them. 
His letters were never careless productions, — im- 
promptu affairs, flowing at their own sweet will. 
He took great pains both in their composition and in 
their subject-matter. 

Before me is a little blank-book, in which are the 
names of his correspondents, with a page assigned to each 
for jotting down interesting items for his next letter to 
them. He was constantly on the alert for subjects, 



142 



An All- Around Boy. 



which as found or suggested would be entered under 
the name of the correspondent likely to be most inter- 
ested in them. These would be checked off when used. 
In this way he accomplished two ends : he never 
lacked for material, and he never repeated himself. 
The latter was quite necessary in his case, for his 
letters proved so interesting that they were usually 
passed around among his circle of acquaintances, and 
repetitions would have been quickly discovered. Their 
interesting character accounts also for the fact that 
they were so generally preserved, and that his father 
now has (through the kindness of these young friends 
in loaning them to him) so large a number from which 
to make a selection for this volume. 

A few pages from the little blank-book above men- 
tioned are herewith given : — 



GRACE. 


GERTRUDE. 


WILL. 


WID. 


Easter Vacation. 


Cold in the 'ed. 


Football game. 


Vacation at B. II. S. 


Stamp-holder. 


A big hunt. 


Photos. 


No. on Linwood Ave. 


'92 Pin, Newark Acad. 


Will and Bill. 


I'm a chump. 


Banjo Club. 


Our clock on a "tare." 


Necktie rush. 


Milo's letter. 


Princeton. 


Will's spoon. 


Street-cars. 


Poetry. 


Bric-a-brac. 


The Nightingale. 


Electric Road. 


Breakfast. 


Music. 


Mamma in N. Y. 


Mosquito hash. 


Going to Buffalo ? 


High School paper. 



Cicero was right when he said that one could be 
fully known through his letters. Far better than we 
could do it, Kalph's letters will show his true character. 
We are quite sure you will not find their reading dull 
or monotonous. 



Selected Letters : First Year. 143 

It ought to be added that in reproducing them here, 
they have been left exactly as he wrote them, with the 
simple exceptions that here and there an evident slip of 
the pen (an extremely rare occurrence a ) has been cor- 
rected, and that omissions are frequent. It was not 
thought wise to burden the reader with matter that 
would not interest him. 

September 12. 

Dear E : We are once more a united family, 

living in perfect bliss in the (rainy) city of Orange, 
with various occupations, the principal of which at 
present is killing " Jarsey skeeters." Well, I arrived 

in New York with Ed. E , on Wednesday morning, 

and we went rushing around the city trying to find out 
about the steamer, which had not been heard from. 
We got left in the matter of going out to meet the 
steamer, because the health launch, which we expected 
to go out in, left early in the morning to meet the 
" Teutonic," and did not come hack, but waited out in 
the bay for the " City of New York." There was an im- 
mense crowd on the dock at half-past twelve when our 

boat came in. About sixteen of the D 's relations 

were there to meet them, and we organized a " gang " 
and elbowed our way to the best place where we could 

1 The original letters are remarkable specimens of painstaking care. 
There is scarcely an erasure (I cannot recall even one) in them. If he 
made a mistake, he would use his eraser, and re-write. If this could 
not well be done, he would destroy the sheet and begin anew. I knew 
him once to destroy a whole edition of the " Torpedo," and reprint it, 
because in proof-reading a comma had been left in place of a period. 



144 An All- Around Boy. 

get a fine view of the steamer and its passengers, who 
crowded the decks. As soon as it was within hailing 
distance we raised a tremendous yell, stood on each 
other's shoulders, waved umbrellas and table-cloths. 
Of course that attracted everybody's attention, and 
our party on board soon saw us, and then we carried 
on a long-distance conversation until the steamer 
landed. 

Papa and I got his baggage through the custom- 
house before anybody else had begun to, and then we 
helped the rest to find their baggage. 

September 15. 

Dear G : I arrived safely at home in Orange 

just twelve hours from the time I stood waving 
my good-by to you from the platform yesterday 
morning. 

The journey was very commonplace and unexcit- 
ing. I read that yellow-covered book of Stockton's, 
and found some of the stories very good, — especially 
" The Water-Devil." I spent considerable time in 
looking out of the window and in observing my 
fellow-passengers. Every little while after I had fin- 
ished a story, I would take a little "snooze." 

There was some difficulty in doing that, because the 
car was crowded, and I had to share my seat with 
some one else. I had six or seven different people to sit 
with me, — changing at almost every stop (thank good- 
ness, there were n't very many of these), — and the one 
that stayed the longest was a disagreeable old fellow 



Selected Letters : First Year. 145 

that was continually jabbing his very sharp elbow 
into my side and back whenever I tried to go to sleep. 
You see I had my guitar, overcoat, and umbrella in 
the seat with me, and that put me in uncomfortably 
close quarters with the old villain, who was on the 
outside ; but I did n't dare to hint — he looked so 
fierce, — that he would put me under great obliga- 
tions to himself and family if he would kindly 
hustle for a seat elsewhere. However, after about 
two hours he left, and I told him that I should 
have been very glad to have made his acquaintance 
if he had occupied some other seat, but as it was 
I could not kiss him good-by. He seemed deeply 
affected, especially by the latter part of my remark. 
This was through the window, as the train was mov- 
ing off; so I couldn't hear his reply, which would 
no doubt have been very refreshing. I was rather 
sorry I did n't buy a reserved seat in the grand-stand, 
— I mean the parlor-car, — but I managed to have a 
pretty good time in criticising some of the passengers, 
and in making the newsboy rush all over after a 
novel I knew he couldn't possibly have. Finally, 
when he was nearly crazy, I told him not to look for 
it any more, as I did n't really need it ; and then I went 
along with him into his " den," which he had estab- 
lished in one corner of the smoking-car. It was piled 
up with papers, magazines, twenty-five-cent novels, 
fruit, and stale candy; and its proprietor, the newsboy, 
gave me some " points " about the business. I was 
surprised to learn that a newsboy sometimes makes 

10 



146 An Ail-Around Boy. 

a clean profit of three or four dollars a day when 
trade is brisk, while on other days he hardly clears a 
dollar. 

About twelve o'clock the train stopped at Bath for 
grub. And how long do you think they stopped ? 
Between four and five minutes. I rushed into the 
lunch-room, and you should have seen me get outside 
of a big tongue sandwich, two glasses of milk, a 
quarter of a large custard-pie, and two pears, — all 
in four minutes, and I have n't had an attack of dys- 
pepsia yet. 

I found my father waiting for me when the train 
arrived at Hoboken, and in a few minutes we were on 
a train bound for Orange. Now that I have got here 
and unpacked my trunk, I am quite homesick for 
Buffalo. Are there any sweet peas left in the garden ? 
Please send one to baby. 

Thursday, October 23. 

Your letter came last week, and of course we were 
all very glad to hear from you. 

How pretty that coat-of-arms on your note-paper is ! 
But, upon my word, that South American condor, or 
whatever it is, sitting up on top there, appears rather 
dangerous, with his beak wide open, as if wishing to 
swallow some delicious morsel of a small boy (like 
myself), and with a big horse-pistol in one hand (claw, 
I mean) and a dagger in the other ! Don't you think 
so ? Now, after studying it a little more, I think I 
see what that Vogel is trying to do. He is making 



Selected Letters : First Year. 147 

a political speech, and intends to enforce and add 
emphasis to his remarks with the afore-mentioned 
weapons. He has just said, " Droit et Avant " (which 
explains the quotation marks which I did n't under- 
stand before), and has paused for a moment to note 
the effect of his words, meanwhile napping his Flilgel 
and nourishing the firearms around. The photographer 
has taken a snap-shot at him while doing this; and 
there he is, put before us on paper, an exact copy of 
life. Have I made it all clear to you ? 

Speaking of photographers, I have at last got my 
photos, after waiting about four years (I mean weeks) 
for them, and I will send you one to-morrow. Photo- 
graphers, as a class, in my opinion are the most unprinci- 
pled men you can find anywhere outside of Sing-Sing. 
(All of 'em ought to be there.) But this particular 
photographer was a villain of villains. However, I 
will not call him bad names now, for it would n't do 
any good, — he has received his just reward and is 
dead, and — well, I should n't dare to say where he has 
gone, because I don't know. I could guess, though. 
Since the memory of man I had been plodding, plod- 
ing, plodding, thrice each day, over to that old fraud's, 
to ask about my photos, and every time from his 
false heart he spoke words such as these : " They will 
positively be done to-morrow." But when u to-mor- 
row " came, they never were. 

Finally, one Saturday I told him that there was no 
man's funeral that I would be happier to attend than 
his, and that if the photos were n't done by six p. M. 



148 An All- Around Boy. 

the next Wednesday, I would no longer deny myself 
that pleasure ! I gave him all that time, so that he 
could not fail to have them done ; and when the fated 
hour came, I marched over there, armed to the teeth, 
and in a stern voice called for him. In a short time I 
pulled forth the doomed man from under the counter, 
whither he had fled, and demanded the photos. With 
shaking limbs and ghastly face he faltered : " I have n't 
had any time to do them yet, but you can really have 
them to-mor — " But he never lived to finish that 
sentence. I — But let us draw a curtain before this 
awful scene. 

Suffice it to say that I arose in my righteous wrath 
and smote that photographer and slew him, and the 
coroner's jury brought in a unanimous verdict of justi- 
fiable manslaughter. 

The next day I paid the burial expenses, and rode 
with the clergyman in the first carriage of the funeral 
procession, a large bandanna protruding from the 
upper pocket of my coat. So much for the poor pho- 
tographer. Peace to his ashes ! 

Last week Thursday evening Papa was installed as 
pastor of the Central Presbyterian Church. Dr, Patton, 
President of Princeton, preached the sermon. Lafay- 
ette Street Church sent a beautiful floral harp for the 
occasion. Will you wait a minute while I get my shot- 
gun and kill three or four mosquitoes that are buzzing 
around the room ? All right, here goes ! Zip ! Bang ! 
Boom I ! I They are no more. Perchance, like others 
these — ■ 



Selected Letters: First Year. 149 

"Immense mosquitoes, dead, and turned to hash, 
May fill the mouth of some poor boarder rash." 

P. S. This is Shakespeare. 

I am working at a 2.40 gait just now. The New- 
ark Academy is a school noted for getting lots of 
studying out of a fellow. Yesterday we had to hand 
in compositions on that worn-out subject, " How I 
spent my Vacation," and next week I shall have to get 
up and make a fool of myself trying to "speek a 
peece." 

November 9. 

I had been wondering for some time what had 
become of you, when your letter came last Monday 
and informed me that at least you were still alive, 
even though you had been sick with colds. Well, I 
can sympathize with you, for I 've had 'em too, but I 
generally make them useful. Why, the last one was 
so serious that I got an excuse from speaking in school 
on the regular day, and did n't have to until last 
Wednesday. Was n't that too had ? Of course I was 
very sorry to be deprived of the privilege (?) of speak- 
ing. But I had my revenge. When I did speak, on 
Wednesday, I nearly drove everybody crazy. 

Please don't tell such an f-i-b as this again : 
" This letter is not very interesting/ 5 I 'd like to know 
how you are competent to judge ! Just you write the 
letter, and 7 '11 guarantee that it will be anything but 
uninteresting. 

I 'm sorry that the account of the photographer's 
tragical death has been published, because I wanted it 



150 



An All- Around Boy. 



kept quiet and out of print ; but as it has been pub- 
lished, you may send me a copy of the "Courier" 
which contains the account 




"SUMUS POPULUS." 

November 30. 

Hip! Hip! Hurrah!! Zip! Boom!! Eah ! Eah ! 
Eah ! ! ! Ella is here at last. Her mother and she came 
last Wednesday. I went in to New York after school 
Wednesday afternoon, and brought them out here. 

Following your stylish example, she and I think of 
adopting a coat-of-arms, and I have put a rough sketch 
of it at the head of this letter, as you see. The scene 
represents a Thanksgiving day, and the two gentlemen 
are battling for the pumpkin-pie below. I don't know 
whether you will be able to read the Greek inscription 
or not. 

December 12. 

I received your letter last Monday in rather unusual 
circumstances, — lying flat on my back on an impro- 
vised couch in my father's study, — and it is from the 
same place and on the same couch, covered with shawls 



Selected Letters : First Year. 151 

and blankets and propped up with pillows, that I am 
answering your letter to-day. 

Well, I must explain, and tell you about the many 
vicissitudes that I have been undergoing. 

Monday at school, in the gymnasium, I sprained my 
right knee so badly that I had to be taken home in a 
carriage. I was laid out in the study, and here 1 have 
been ever since. Fortunately the sprain is not very 
serious, and I have been able all the while to be up 
and around, but the doctor said to keep absolutely 
quiet was the best way to cure it. 

Meanwhile I have been trying to study my lessons 
and keep up with my classes, but I find it awfully 
hard work. I don't feel one bit like studying. 

For the last week we have been " in the world, but 
not of it," for hardly any one has come within half a 
mile of our house, on account of the diphtheria scare. 
And it was all a " fake." My little sister has n't had 
diphtheria at all. But I shan't say anything more, 
for another one of my sisters is sick to-day, and she 
may have it 

My plans have been sadly deranged lately, but at 
the present moment, just as much as I ever did, I 
expect to visit Buffalo week after next. I shall feel 
like breaking old " Doc's " head if he does n't give us 
those three days before Christmas. I started a petition 
(to get them) Monday, and since I have been laid up, 
my chum has been engineering it for me. He informed 
me (by letter) Wednesday that he had nearly a hun- 
dred names, and was going to hand it in to-day. 



152 An All- Around Boy. 

Of course if we get them, I can go to Buffalo next 
week. 

Whew ! how poetical and full of quotations you 
are ! I wish that when you quote something, you 
would add the author's name (in parenthesis), so that I 
could know whether it came from Shakespeare or G. C. 1 

Well, I expect to see you all before long, and then 
you and I can play that game of Halma which you 
remember is necessary to decide the championship 
between you and me. Shall I hear from you again 
before then ? 

I would write more, but I want to send this off 
now, so you will get it to-morrow. 
Your sincere friend. 

December 14. 

My dear Coz, — I am sorry that you could not stay 
longer and come out to Orange again, for I am sadly 
in need of your consolation in my present condition. 

I suppose you arrived home safely last night. Did 
A meet you at Bingham ton ? 

I received your pleasant little letter yesterday after- 
noon, just as Aunt C arrived, and I wish that I 

could tell you the joyful news — to me — that I was 
coming to Buffalo on Monday, — but — the doctor 
examined my knee last night, and made the alarming 
discovery that I have water on it, which he said was 
very serious. I at once suspected the sad news, and 
asked him if I should be able to go to Buffalo. He 
saw what a disappointment it was, and tried to avoid 
1 Grover Cleveland. 



Selected Letters : First Year. 153 

answering me ; but I wanted to know the worst right 
away, and made him tell me. He said I could n't go 
to-morrow nor on Monday, but I might be able to go 
in a week. I knew what he meant by his tone of 
voice when he said it. He meant that I have got to 
stay in the house all this vacation, if not longer, and 
not use my leg any more than is possible. That is the 
same as saying that I must sit or' lie around and do 
nothing. 

Oh, it 's a terrible disappointment, and so cruel after 
looking forward to this time for three months ! 

I know you will forgive this mournful letter, and I 
hope I shall be in a more cheerful mood by the time 
your answer gets here. Please write soon. 
Your loving Cousin. 

My dear E — — : Papa has just said that if I study 
up this week, and get all my lessons, besides those for 
next week, I can go to Buffalo next Friday. I think 
I can get those lessons with that reward in view. 



One takes so much pains with a letter, one does not 
like to feel that it has all gone for nothing. 

Madame de Sevigne. 



CHAPTEE XV. 

SELECTED LETTERS: SECOND YEAR. 

January 4, 1891. 

I WAS just about to write " 1890 " up there, when I 
happened to think that that is a thing of the 
past, and if I want to be " up to date " I can't write 
that number any more I received a letter from you 
the day before Christmas, and yesterday I got your 
" note," — the one that was not a letter. 

Why did n't you go ahead and make it a letter, when 
you got so near to it ? And can you explain why I 
didn't get it until Saturday when it was written Mon- 
day ? But wait a minute, — I '11 look at the envelope. 
Oh, I see now ! It was not mailed until Friday ! I 
wonder if you were absent-minded and carried it 
around in your pocket all the week, forgetting to mail 
it. Or perhaps you wrote half of it on Monday, and 
the other half Thursday or Friday. I can't think 
that of you, though. At any rate, I feel highly honored 
that the first letter (I forgot, — I mean " note ") you 
wrote on your new paper should be to me. 

I think your new pictures are just fine, and I thank 
you very much for the one you sent me. Do you really 
want one of my pictures ? Of course, if you insist, I 
shall send you one, according to the agreement we 



156 An Ail-Around Boy. 

made. But I consider them pretty " rank " pictures, 
and advise you to wait until I have some more taken. 

I wish, indeed, that I had taken your advice, and 
had been " boxed up in a closet " the three weeks 
before Christmas, and then I could have gone to Buffalo. 
But I look at it in this way, — if I had not been hurt 
and had gone to Buffalo, of course I should have had 
an elegant time, but all the fun would have been over 
now, and I should be back here with the expectation 
of not going again for a long time, while, as it is, I 
have the prospect of a fine visit there next summer. 

How I hate to go back to school to-morrow! It's 
awfully demoralizing to be out a month. 

Speaking about school, I must tell you about the 
way "Doc." annihilated our "petish" at school, two 
weeks ago. I was n't there, of course, but I heard about 
it. All the fellows had signed it, and they were just 
about to hand it in one day, when " Doc." marched into 
the room in his solemn, pompous way, and struck 
terror to the boys' hearts with words such as these : 
" Young gentlemen of the renowned Newark Academy ! 
I have this moment been informed that certain 
ones in this school, — I will mention no names, — 
imbued with that demoralizing spirit which has so 
often been the ruin of individual and government 
alike, since the memory of man, namely, that of 
endeavoring to shirk work and duty at every oppor- 
tunity, and seeking to create an opportunity for so 
doing when none is offered — have started, and are 
even now engaged in the work of carrying through a 



Selected Letters : Second Year. 157 

petition, — a petition having for its ignoble object the 
securing of three days of additional vacation, — of ad- 
ditional vacation ! ! " Here " Doc." brought his fist 
down on a desk with a whack. Then he became quite 
eloquent, and enumerated all the holidays, extra-holi- 
days, and half-holidays that the Academy has had 
during the past ten years, after which he continued 
as follows : " The utter audacity, the consummate 
effrontery, the unmitigated depravity of such a request 
in the face of this long array of holidays, which upon 
any just grounds we have been only too glad to grant ! 
But can we heed this petition, or even countenance for 
a moment the unheard-of boldness of its demands ? 
Could we listen to hungry-eyed children crying for 
bread, and families famine-stricken because our teach- 
ers have no employment ? Shall we tolerate shiftless- 
ness, shirking, and depravity among our pupils, — in 
the very midst of those whom we are endeavoring to 
direct to a noble manhood ? Can we endure this, I 
say ? Never ! ! " At this point " Doc." stopped to get 
breath, and finding he had but a very little left, he 
" wound up " : " Young gentlemen, I trust that this 
report is entirely unfounded, and that no such idea 
has, or ever will, enter your minds." 

That was the end of the poor " petish." After that 
speech it was torn up and thrown in the waste-paper 
basket. I heard of its sad end on the same day that 
the doctor told me I could n't go to Buffalo, and I felt 
pretty "rank," — as though I should like to follow the 
petition. 



158 An All- Around Boy. 

February 2. 

My dear Coz ; — Well, Mamma is off' for California 
on Tuesday. The train leaves Jersey City at noon. 
We can't realize that she is going, nor can she herself. 
But the big basket trunk is being packed, and she has 
sent out P. P. C. cards. A large box of books and 
other things that belonged to Grandpa and Grandma 
Eobinson, some of them for Uncle Frank, arrived from 
Gowanda yesterday. 

April 12. 

I've come to the conclusion that I'm a fellow of 
pretty hard luck. I have some more news for you of 
a kind you've heard before. Last week Wednesday 
afternoon, while I was playing base ball on the Acad- 
emy team at Elizabeth, I gave my knee (the same old 
one) an awful wrench, and pulled it out of joint. I 
suppose it must have been weak from the former 
sprain, but I had never supposed it was as bad as 
that. 

Well, as a consequence, I am laid up again in bed, — 
indefinitely. I don't think, though, it 's as bad as the 
first time. I'll be out again before long, but I shan't 
engage in any more base ball, — I '11 save myself for 
tennis in Buffalo next summer. 

As long as the cold weather lasted, there was fine 
sliding at the Essex County Toboggan Club. They 
have a double slide built on a natural hill, — the best 
I ever saw. There is a fine club-house, and the slides 
go right under part of it. It is great sport, but 
mostly, as the Chinaman described it, " Whiz-z I 



Selected Letters : Second Year. 159 

Walkee back four mile." The distance is so long that 
you can only get about ten slides during the whole 
evening. 

I have played tennis several times on those covered 
courts, and I really think they ought to have some 
like them in Buffalo. 

The out-door tennis season has n't opened yet, and 
I have been devoting myself to base ball. 

March was an awfully busy month. There were 
lots and lots of parties, concerts, lectures, and enter- 
tainments, — something nearly every night. 

I have had good success at most of the parties I 
have been to, where there were prizes. At a progres- 
sive Tiddledy-winks about a month ago, I captured 
the booby prize (I had never tried to play it before) ; 
but at the last Tiddledy — it was on the evening Belle 
arrived here — my skill had improved, and I got the 
second prize, a sterling silver case for court-plaster. 
Then there was a jolly cobweb party, where somebody 
defrauded me out of the booby prize. (You see my 
string got into a triple hard knot.) 

On March 25th the Yale Glee and Banjo Clubs gave 
a concert here. It was the best concert I ever heard. 

You had a whole week's Easter vacation, did n't 
you ? Well, you were lucky. According to the Acad- 
emy's usual custom of giving as little vacation as 
possible, we had just two days. In the school cata- 
logue it said, "Spring Vacation (in large capital let- 
ters), March 27-30." That sounded quite nice; but 
when you came to learn the facts of the case, you 



160 An All- Around Boy. 

found that the 27th was Friday, and the 30th Monday. 
But we had those two days anyway. 

I guess the parties are all over now. There have n't 
been any this week. If there had been any the last 
four days, I should n't have gone to them. 

Oh, it 's lots of fun lying in bed all the while ! I 
find it awfully hard work to study my lessons. The 
rest of the time I read novels, sleep, and play on my 
guitar in all the awkward positions imaginable. 

I have just been looking over this letter, and it looks 
pretty "rank." But it's no place to write a letter 
in bed, and appearances will be excusable under the 
present circumstances. 

You are going to write very soon, are n't you ? Please 
do. I 'm a man of leisure now, and I '11 answer your 
letter as soon as I get it. Please remember me to the 
" crowd," and write as soon as you can. 
Your sincere friend. 

P. S. I was going to sign myself " Your (sprained) 
kneedy friend ; " but that is too much. I was afraid 
you would expire. 

June 14. 

I suppose you think that I have disappeared from 
the face of the earth. But it is n't so ; I 'm still here, 
— the same lazy good-for-nothing I always was. 

So I have n't written to you ! I simply have n't done 
it, — have n't written a single letter, — and that 's all 
there is to be said. Newark Academy is built on a 
different plan from any school I ever went to before, 
because you really have to work there. 



Selected Letters : Second Year. 161 

The deadly mosquitoes have already begun to ap- 
pear, although not yet in very large numbers. They 
are still quite young and small, and can be quite easily 
killed with the hands alone. Now is the time to catch 
and tame them. Some people prefer them to canaries, 
and keep them in cages. As for myself, I can't bear 
them, not even in hash, not being a true " Jerseyite." 

Last Thursday and Friday I took the Princeton 
exam's in New York, — fifteen or sixteen exam's. I 
never did so much real work before in two days. 
Yesterday afternoon in New York I saw Princeton 
beat Yale for the base-ball championship. It was the 
finest game of ball I ever saw. Perhaps that 's because 
I 'm Princeton. I don't think a Yale fellow would say 
that. I did my share of yelling, and when I got home 
I was so hoarse I could only whisper. I tell you what, 
Princeton is on the top shelf now. 

Buffalo, N. Y. 

I was very glad to get your note last evening, and 
wished that you could have come yourself. 

Well, this is awfully hard luck ; but I 'm used to 
that, so I '11 grin and bear it. And perhaps I '11 learn 
to keep out of tennis. My injured member is a little 
better to-day, but I shall probably find it (k) needful 
(don't faint !) to keep quiet a few days. 

No, indeed, there 's nothing comic about a sprained 
knee. I know that, because I 've " been there before, 
many 's the time." 

While I was trying to get my fountain pen into 
n 



162 An All- Around Boy. 

working order before writing this note, I made a blot 
on the old newspaper that is under this writing-paper. 
The blot looked like something, so I labelled it 1 and 
here it is. 

Expecting to see you to-morrow, I am, as always, 
Your friend. 

July 6. 

My dear Papa, — I received your last letter on 
Wednesday. Thank you for the check 

I may go to Westfield at the last of the month, but 
can't go now, because I am going to Oakfield on Thurs- 
day for one or two weeks. I am going with T 

G , on the same plan as last summer. 

I think the best way to fix money matters will be to 

send me a check for dollars each week. That 

will cover board, washing, laundry, and other ex- 
penses ; and I will keep a strict account of it, and not 
spend any for things that ought to come out of my 
own pocket. 

I have just been asked to join that party of fellows 
I told you about, that are going up to the Muskoka 
region and camp out. The party will consist of the 

E boys, the F boys, G , and W 

D of Brooklyn. They are going up for the whole 

month of August, and expect that it will cost thirty 
dollars each; at the outside, thirty-five dollars. As 
soon as I learn the particulars, I '11 let you know. 

Meanwhile what do you and Mamma think about 
my going ? 

1 The label was " A Spring Chicken." 



Selected Letters : Second Year. 163 

I have my hands full, and am having a fine time, 
even though I have stopped playing tennis, I have 
been down the river twice, — once to Falcon wood with 

Mrs. F and G , and once with part of " the 

crowd " to the new Island Club, at the invitation of 
A H . 

Saturday evening " the crowd" was at C B 's, 



and had a jolly time, — fire-crackers, fireworks of all 
kinds, banjo and guitar playing, and refreshments. 

In the morning " the crowd " all sat in a row on top 
of a high board fence at the corner of Main and North 
Streets, and saw the parade. I never saw old Buffalo 
so gayly decorated and such crowds on the streets as 
during the last four days. They have got the new 
electric trolley cars on Niagara Street, and it seems as 
though people would never tire of staring at them. 

I received a letter from Warren on Saturday, and 
will answer it when I can. 

We all hope that Mamma is strong again. So many 
people have asked to be remembered to you and 
Mamma that I can't remember them. 

Love to all. 

" Wynetka-on-the-Lake," August 21. 

I am writing this on a window-sill up in our room, 

with a stub-pen that I borrowed from Miss H . The 

ink is in a very small pill-bottle, which nearly tips 
over every time I put the pen into it. If it does spill, 
I '11 have to finish with a broken -pointed pencil. 

Biding down in an open car, I thought I should 



164 An Ail-Around Boy. 

have the whole front seat to myself ; but soon an 
immense fat woman climbed in. Instead of sitting at 
the other end of the seat, she squeezed up close to me, 
and nearly crushed me. She had a large basket that 
seemed to contain every kind of eatable, from an 
animal cracker up to a watermelon, and all the way 
up she was eating out of it. Her capacity seemed 
to be unlimited, and every time she ate a pie or a 
doughnut she took a side- glance at me, as if to say, 
" Um ! Don't you wish you had some ? " I think she 
ate three bananas and five peaches, besides some 
assorted crackers, cheese, sandwiches, cake, pie, water- 
melon, and apples. Well, I escaped at last, and went 
on my way rejoicing. 

At the dock we met Dr. S , and Mary P on 

the boat, so we were not " all by our lonesomes." Harry 

W was at the dock when we arrived ; and Mary, 

Gertrude, Harry, and I rowed over in our boat. The 
lake was like glass when we started ; but suddenly a 
storm came up, and in less than five minutes raised 
quite large waves. Then it began to pour, and we 
were soaked. At last we arrived safely, and changed 
our wet clothes. When I got through this operation, 
I looked like a tramp. I put on those awfully old 
check trousers, and as I did n't have another coat, I 

used my overcoat instead. Harry W looked like a 

cheap swell in Bert P 's tennis suit, with the trou- 
sers turned up nine inches at the bottom. I went over 
with a couple of pails after some water, and was 
greeted with some rude remarks like these : " Whar 



Selected Letters : Second Year. 165 

air them pants checked fur ? " and " Is those checks 

certyfied ? " Old had been a little deaf, but since 

she saw those trousers last night, she has n't been able 
to hear a word, they were so loud. 

Yesterday afternoon K 's brother-in-law, or uncle, 

or something, took me out fishing. The wind was so 
strong we could n't feel a bite, and, although the 
anchor was heavy, it kept drifting us along towards 
shore. After about an hour of pitching and tossing, 
we gave it up. We each landed a small perch, and 
lost two black bass. 

He sat in the bow and got soaked, while I in the 
stern escaped ; that 's the difference between sitting 
in the bow and in the stern. 

We had a grand dinner of seven courses last night. 

You ought to have been here. It was Mr. H 's 

birthday. 

Buffalo, N. Y., August 23. 

Well, we started on the hay-ride about eight, — 
right after dinner. We had a wagon just large enough 
to hold the fifteen of our crowd. I sat on the front 
seat with the driver, and blew a large tin horn. 
Whew ! we did make an awful noise ! It must 
have wakened everybody up within a radius of five 
miles. 

We serenaded Eidgeway and Mr. E , and then 

drove over to Crystal Beach to take Dr. S to the 

9. 30 boat. We all got out there, and marched down the 
plank walk to the dock in a body. When the boat 
went off, we sang : — 



166 An All- Around Boy. 

" Good-night, Doctor, 

Good-night, Doctor, 

Good-night, Doctor, 
You 're going to leave us now. 
Merrily you'll roll along, 
Roll along, roil along, 
Merrily you '11 roll along, 
O'er the dark blue sea. 

"Farewell, Aconite," &e. 

Then we drove home, — rather quietly, because we 
were all hoarse from singing and yelling so much, and 
my chest was sore from blasting away at that horn for 

an hour and a half. Harry W sang some funny 

songs, — "There goes Mr. M in his misfit suit of 

' clothes,' " and " Will yez all be wid me when I tackle 
Daddy Flynn ? " 

About ten o'clock we got back, and took chairs 
down cellar, where the great old-fashioned fireplace 
had been heaped high with driftwood and logs. It 

made a grand fire, and by the light of it Mr. H 

and Harry W gave a sort of negro performance, 

and danced while I played the banjo. Mr. H 

was rich. Miss H danced, too, and Mr. L 

turned hand-springs. It was a circus, and I wish you 
could have been there. Afterwards we toasted marsh- 
mallows by the coals, and then went down on the 
beach. Saturday morning most of the people went 
off on the early boat, while the rest began to pack up, 
for we had decided not to stay over Sunday. 

Harry and I, with a lot of baggage, started to row 
A— — - and E over for the early boat ; but the lake 



Selected Letters: Second Year. 167 

was so rough that we missed it by fifteen minutes, and 

all got soaked besides, especially E , who sat in the 

bow. We left the boat (its time was up), and stacked 
the baggage under a counter in the refreshment-room, 
and walked back. Then it was all packing until ten 

o'clock, when the wagon came. Before we left, B 

took a lot of pictures of Harry W and me, singly 

and together, and some groups of the crowd, and some 
time exposures of the house. 

I guess Mr C did n't know how much stuff we 

had, or he never would have brought around the 
small wagon — pulled by a lean, lank horse that 
looked as though he was in the last stages of consump- 
tion — that appeared at ten o'clock. 

We never knew, till then, how much truck we 
really did have. First, there were the twenty cots 
and twenty chairs ; then a lot of tubs, tin-pails, and 
baskets, all full of dishes, crockery, and tinware, went 
on board; mixed in with these were half-a-dozen ham- 
mocks, some overcoats, mackintoshes, and loose umbrel- 
las ; the last, but by no means least, thirty-seven 
bundles of assorted sizes, containing the bedding and 
various possessions of each one. That poor horse 
never worked so hard before in his life. In the dirt- 
road it was comparatively easy, but through the long 
stretch of sand to reach the dock it was awfully tough 
pulling, and we had to put our shoulders to the 
wheels. In the middle of the road a tin-pail half full 
of cookies, which had been on the top of the heap, fell 
off, and the cookies went rolling around in the dust. 



168 An Ail-Around Boy. 

We picked them up and traded them — at a farm- 
house near by — with some kids for a lot of dandy 
apples. Poor kids ! But I suppose the cookies tasted 
good. 

Jove ! It was work loading all that stuff on the 
boat and unloading it again at Buffalo ! But we did 

it; and when we arrived one of J. P. P & Co.'s 

big wagons met us, and took everything up to Niagara 
Square. We met there in the evening and "settled 
up." 

September 20. 

This may be rather late in the day to congratulate 
you upon your birthday ; but if it is not too late, I 
want to do so most heartily. I have n't heard, but 
suppose, of course, that your party came off on Friday 

evening. How I longed to be there ! Did G 

O and Will D take in your party, or the other 

one first ? Was my cousin E there ? 

I spent last week trying to find something to do, 
and did n't succeed very well. 

I send you in this letter a fancy sketch of a New 
Jersey adventure. Let " the crowd " read it, especially 
Wid, because he is fond of hunting. As soon as you 
decide which one of my pictures you want, I will send 
one to you. 

I have just written a letter to Wid, and this is 
written in a great hurry to catch the six-o'clock 
mail. 

Eemember me to " the crowd." 

Write soon to your sincere friend. 



Selected Letters: Second Year. 169 



A New Jersey Adventure. 

About four in the afternoon one hot September day, 
a Lackawanna train pulled into the depot at Orange, 
New Jersey. Among those who alighted from the train 
was a young fellow carrying a Winchester rifle in a neat 
water-proof case. He was dressed in a leather hunting- 
jacket, corduroy trousers, and heavy boots, with a white 
helmet on his head. 

He was apparently expecting some one to meet him ; 
and espying a roughly dressed, grizzly-bearded man, 
stepped up to him and said, " Why, how are you, Mr. 
Johnson, don't you know me ? " 

The other replied : " Oh, ya-as, sure 'nuff, it 's yew. 
How dy dew ? Cum right along, we hain't no time to 
lose." 

While sayiug this, he led the way to an old buggy 
drawn by an old farm-horse. Seating themselves, they 
started on a seven-mile drive to Mountain Station, the 
small village which was their destination. The horse 
showed good speed, and in a little over an hour they 
drew up in front of Johnson's house, from which a rifle 
was produced. Having no spare time, they immediately 
started off on foot, leaving the buggy behind. 

"Well, Johnson, are you going to show me some 
good shooting this evening ? " asked the young hunter. 
Johnson said : " Oh, ya-as. Most people think Jarsey 
hain't got nothin' in it bigger 'n a woodchuck. Ef they 'd 
cum here, I 'd soon take them idees outen their heads. 
I 'm a-goin' tew show yew something tew-nite what '11 
make yure hair stand rite up on end." 

He then went on to tell about a certain animal of 
immense size that had been terrorizing the inhabitants 
of his village for several weeks, killing sheep, horses, 



170 An All- Around Boy. 

cows, and attacking every one that came within reach. 
Its last act was to carry off a small child ; and this had 
thoroughly aroused the people, who had been hunting 
it without success. "We'll git a shot at it tew-nite, 
sure's pop, fur I jist cum acrost its den yisterday," 
added Johnson. 

Meanwhile the two men were walking across open 
fields* and soon came to a belt of thick woods, into which 
they plunged. 

In the last field, tied to the fence, was a young calf, 
which the guide loosened and led hurriedly after him. 
For a long time, it seemed to the impatient young man, 
they pushed forward through the forest, their passage 
almost blocked at times by the thick underbrush. But 
perseverance overcame all obstacles, and at length they 
came into a small open place, seeming to be entirely 
natural, as no trees had been cut down. On every side 
the underbrush was very thick ; but in one spot it had 
been broken and crushed, as if by a heavy body. At 
one end of this open space the calf was fastened to a 
small tree ; and about one hundred feet farther on, under 
an overhanging bush, the guide brushed away some sticks 
and leaves, disclosing a large circular hole a trifle over 
five feet in depth. Near by lay a piece of heavy iron 
grating, with a door in the centre, intended to be placed 
over the top of the hole as a protection. 

The guide motioned his companion to enter the hole, 
and then gave him some instructions : " Jist git rite in 
thar, and be all reddy tew shute. There ain't no time 
for tew fix this here gratin' ; but don't yew be afrade. 
Yew '11 know the old feller when yew see him ; an' let 
him have it rite in the I ! Good-by ; I 'm going up this 
tree." 

So saying, he partially covered the top of the hole 
with brush and leaves, and proceeded to " shin up " to 



Selected Letters : Second Bay. 171 

a comfortable percli in a tree near by. Then there was 
silence. It was already dusk, and black darkness would 
soon cover all things with its ever-increasing gloom. 
The air was damp and mouldy, suggesting the proximity 
of a large swamp. Nothing relieved" the oppressive 
silence, save the hum of insects and the distant croak 
of a bull-frog. Now and then, however, the unfortunate 
calf voiced its loneliness in a plaintive call. 

It seemed as if hours passed, and nothing happened. 
Then the moon rose behind a thin veil of cloud, and 
its pale light, just rendering objects discernible, only 
added to the weirdness of the scene. 

Hark ! What is that ? A slight crackle causes the 
drowsy hunter in the hole to start up instantly. 

The sounds grow louder and louder ; and then there 
comes into view the largest animal that ever roamed 
the wilds of New Jersey since the days of G. Wash- 
ington. 

It stands there gazing around, its eyes gleaming in 
the shadow like two balls of fire. Then it rushes upon 
the trembling calf, whose cries have perhaps attracted 
it ; and in a moment calfy is a fit subject for the 
undertaker. 

At that instant it is startled by a sound made by 
the over-zealous hunter in his excitement. Turning, 
it glares in the direction of the hole, and then, seem- 
ing to scent danger, slowly creeps towards its foe. On 
and on, nearer and nearer, it comes, and still the hunter 
does not fire. Can his rifle be out of order, or is he 
paralyzed with fear ? 

Scarcely a dozen feet distant, it crouches a moment 
for its spring. Crack ! There is the sharp report of a 
rifle ; the great mosquito leaps six feet into the air, and 
falls, shot through the heart. 



172 An Ail-Around Boy. 

The next day, upon being carted over to the village, 
it tipped the scale at nine hundred and sixty-seven 
pounds, and measured five and a half feet in length. 
It stood over four feet high, and had lost its wings, its 
only means of locomotion being its legs, of which it had 
seven. 

It was indeed a formidable animal, having a double 
saw-edged bill over five feet in length, which was capable 
of being folded up. This was aided in operation by two 
large buzz-saws and several smaller circular saws. In 
addition to these it was supplied with a steam-drill and 
pumping-machine, connected by a line of pipes for carry- 
ing off the victim's blood. It was eventually stuffed, and 
sent to the Smithsonian Institute at Washington, as a 
specimen. 

" Which only shows," as old Johnson remarked, " thet 
it ain't good fer the complex-yun tew go walkin' round 
in Jarsey after dark without havin' a good shootin'-iron 
in yure pistil-pockit." 

November 4. 

You 11 probably be surprised again at my answering 
your letter so soon. The reason for it and also for 
the " scrawly " appearance this letter will present 
when finished, is that I am — and have been for the last 
four days — reclining upon my downy bed. I don't 
believe you could guess why, if you tried a week, 
It 's an awfully funny thing, — I mean a queer thing, 
it has n't been very amusing to me, — and it is some- 
thing that I never should have supposed could lay a 
fellow up. I may as well tell you what it is, and let 
you laugh, — it 's a wisdom tooth. I 've had three 
wisdom teeth, and they never troubled me ; but this 



Selected Letters: Second Year. 173 

fourth one made himself known in a very disagreeable 
manner. I first felt him (der Zahn, you know) last 
Friday, caught cold in him on Saturday, and since then 
my movements have been confined to a very limited 
space. My face was all swollen up on one side like a 
big cabbage, and if you had seen me two days ago you 
would n't have known me at all. I 've had a high old 
time with roaring-hot plasters, poultices, and about 
seventeen different kinds of medicine, and at last it 
had to be lanced. It 's getting well now, and I wish 
it {das Maul) would hurry up, for I can't chew any- 
thing, and I 'm everlastingly tired of soups and all 
that sort of thing. I '11 never again feel like saying 
something bad when I hear an unfortunate baby 
howling because its teeth are coming. I '11 simply 
walk up to it and say, " Shake ! Been there myself." 

November 29. 

Well, the great foot-ball game has been played and 
lost. That is the way 1" say it. A Yale fellow would 
put " won " for " lost." I suppose you have read an 
account of it, but I'll tell you how I saw it. 

I took a train from Orange, and arrived at New York 
about noon. I expected George and Will to meet me 
there, but found Will waiting for me alone. He had 
received a telegram from George the day before, saying 
that he was not well and the doctor would n't let him 
come. Poor George ! It must have been a great dis- 
appointment to him, especially since Yale won. 

Will and I boarded an elevated train and were lucky 



174 An All- Around Boy. 

enough to get seats ; but some young ladies came in 
at the next stop, and we stood up the rest of the way. 
Before the train had made half-a-dozen stops, it was 
full of people, and at every station a lot more tried to 
crowd in, so that by the time we got up to One Hun- 
dred and Fifty-fifth Street, we were packed in that car 
just like sardines. The grounds had been opened at 
10.30, and when we arrived at 1.15 they were almost 
full, and the stand we had reserved tickets for was 
packed ; but we secured fairly good seats, and waited 
for the great game to begin. 

On every side of the field great stands arose in tiers 
of seats, and all were crowded with people. There were 
thought to be about forty thousand there, and every 
one wore or carried blue or orange and black in some 
shape. 

It was a great sight, that surging mass of color, and 
reminded you of the pictures of the old Eoman Coli- 
seum. Every time a gayly decorated coach rolled on 
the field a great cheer from one side or the other went 
up, and at two o'clock, when the two teams lined up 
for battle, the excitement was intense. Eain soon 
began to fall ; but no one noticed it, and nearly all sat, 
as Will and I did, for two hours with no protection at 
all except our overcoats. 

For forty-five minutes of solid playing, the teams 
surged up and down the field; and when time was 
called, neither side had scored. Yale men were filled 
with dismay, as they expected to have a walk over 
with the orange and black. But in the second half 



Selected Letters: Second Year. 175 

Yale's superior training showed itself, and, aided by 
some very hard luck for Princeton, she scored her 
nineteen points. 

After the game was over there was a grand rush for 
the elevated trains, and it was the worst " jam " I ever 
was in. I thought I should be squeezed into a jelly, 
but managed to come out of it all right. But how we 
looked ! Water dripping off from us everywhere, and 
our shoes and trousers covered with mud. Will and I 
pushed our way among the first into a train, and had 
seats all the way down. 

Will tried to persuade me to come to Brooklyn with 
him, while I wanted him to go to Orange, and we had 
a very exciting argument. I couldn't go to Brooklyn, 
because at home they were going to have the Thanks- 
giving dinner at seven in the evening, especially on 
my account, and Will said he could n't go to Orange 
because his family would worry about him and be very 
angry. (I think the real reason was that he thought 
he looked too badly ) 

Well, we talked and we argued, and after leaving 
the train we stood on a street corner in the rain and 
argued for ten or fifteen minutes. We must have 
presented a very queer appearance standing there, 
under the dim light of a lamp-post, wildly gesticu- 
lating and waving our arms over our heads. 

Neither would give in, and finally we shook hands 
and said good-by. 

I wish you could have seen that game, — that is, if 
you could have had a seat in the covered grand stand 
out of the rain. 



176 An Ail-Around Boy. 

The next time you see Mr. D , ask him what he 

thought of the game. He was there on invitation of 

" Billy " W , of Buffalo, who is president of the 

Yale Football Association. Papa spent last evening 
with Mr. D in New York. 

December 16. 

I can't realize that it is only about a week before 
Christmas. I never knew of such queer winter 
weather as we have had this month. Until yester- 
day, every day for nearly two weeks was bright, with- 
out a cloud in the sky, and just cold enough to make 
an overcoat comfortable. Yesterday it rained some, 
and to-day we had the first snow of the season, — 
a short hard storm which lasted only fifteen minutes. 

I hope that after this there will be lots of snow 
and cold weather, for Christmas and holidays never 
seem quite so real without them. Here it is the week 
before Christmas, and I have n 't got a single present. 
I am going to New York on Saturday, and I '11 have 
to " make a day of it." But I 'm afraid I '11 make 
a pretty sorry kind of a " shopper," and so I think I '11 
get my mother to go with me. 

Friday evening was the Princeton concert, and it 
was just splendid. Nearly every piece, whether by 
the glee, banjo, or mandolin club, was encored, and 
some of them were encored three or four times. I '11 
show you the programme. The songs were mostly 
new ones, and some were very funny. One of them 
had the 'chorus, — 



Selected Letters : Second Year. 177 

" Oh, you have to be a lover of the landlady's daughter 
If you want to get a second piece of pie." 

All my spare time on Saturday I had to put on the 
preparation of a debate, which has been hanging over 
my head for two weeks. It took place on Monday 
before the literary society of the school. The subject 
was, " Eesolved that the influence of fiction is injuri- 
ous." My chum had the affirmative side, and I was 
on the negative, and we each had a lower-form fellow 
to help us. Of course the affirmative side told many 
heartrending stories of small boys who had run 
away to sea, or had gone out West to scalp Indians, 
through the influence of dime novels like " The 
Adventures of Deadwood Dick " and " Left-handed 
Luke, the Lion-hearted Lad Left on Labrador." But 
the arguments of the other side seemed to have more 
weight with the judges, and the debate was decided in 
the negative. 

Next week come the " exams " at school. I shudder 
to think of them. 



12 



/ am no believer in the doctrine that the best letters are 
those which are written with careless ease. I prefer them 
written with a skilful ease, thoughtfully, though generally 
in the language of life, no doubt, and not in the language 
of literature ; but in such a language of life as a man 
uses when he speaks his best, in his wisest or brightest 
or gayest or most passionate moments. 

Henry Taylor. 



CHAPTEE XVI. 

SELECTED LETTERS: THIRD YEAR. 

January 6. 

HOME again in Orange ! George and Will were 
at the [Buffalo] station, anxiously awaiting 
my appearance. We checked our baggage, secured 
our tickets, and went on board. In a few minutes 
the train started, and again I left dear old Buffalo. 

We had a pretty good time in our cosey little state- 
room. Frank U was on the train, and came in and 

talked for a while. He was going to Binghamton, and 
had to turn out at the unearthly hour of three A. M. 

Then Willoughby B and George E , two Yale 

"fresh" from Buffalo, came in. We sang college 
songs with guitar accompaniment, and I played 
" Sebastopol." Finally, about midnight, we tossed up 
for berths. Will got first choice, and took the large 
lower berth. I was above him, and George was on 
the lounge opposite. We piled out into the smoking- 
room while the porters made the beds. We sat and 
roared over a ridiculous account in the "News" about 
a " red-handed assassin," who had " killed more people 
than any other living man." He began by shooting 
all the people by the name of Jones in a whole county 
in Kentucky. Then he killed his step-father, two 
half-brothers, his wife's first husband, and nine other 



180 An Ail-Around Boy. 

men. After shooting his three cousins, who were 
" laying " for him in an ambuscade, he wound up 
by slaughtering a sheriff and his whole posse, who had 
come to arrest him. It was a queer thing to laugh 
about, I know ; but it struck us as being so ridiculous 
that all these people should stand meekly around and 
let the fellow shoot 'em, — that we had to roar. 

It took the porter an awful while to fix up, so we 
got tired of waiting and started back. We had to 
walk the whole length of the car, and the train was 
rushing around curves at a great rate of speed. The 
lights were turned low, as everybody else had " turned 
in." 

We started out bravely enough, but suddenly the 
train went " swish " around a sharp curve. Oh ! you 
should have seen us. My elbow crashed into a man's 
head behind a curtain, and Will sat down on another 
fellow's toes. All George struck was the floor, and he 
said it was " quite hard." We made our escape, and 
when we arrived at our stateroom found that the 
porters had only two berths made up. At one A. m. 
we were in bed. I slept pretty well until half -past 
seven, when I woke up almost frozen, and shut a 
window above me. Then I fired a pillow at George, 
and went to sleep for another hour. 

We arrived in Hoboken on time, and after getting 
some grub in the waiting-room restaurant, George and 
Will took the ferry to New York, while I got on a 
train for Orange. 

And here I am ! It will be such hard work to study 



Selected Letters : Third Year. 181 

this afternoon. But with three days' lessons to make 
up, I '11 have to go to work. When I got home, Papa 
said : " You played a trick on us, did n't you, and 
stayed a day longer than you ought ? " But he was n't 
very angry, and it will be all right. 

January 10. 

Dear Grace, — Your letter was the first I had 
heard of the death of little Gracie. It is very, very 
sad. I wish I could see you to tell you how sorry I 
am, for words look so unmeaning when they are 
written on paper. If I could see you now, I could 
make you understand my feelings, but I can't seem to 
express what I want to on paper. I can simply say 
that I am ever so sorry, and you '11 believe me, won't 
you ? 

What a sweet little girl she was ! Her father and 
mother must be almost heart-broken. It seems as if 
the doctor might have saved her ; yet we know that 
her life was directed by a power higher than any 
earthly one, and that her being so soon taken away 
from those who loved her was for the best. 

January 16. 

Will D has been here and gone. I " saw him off " 

just a few minutes ago. He came yesterday afternoon. 
I took him with me in the evening ; we went to that 
circus. It was given entirely (with one exception) by 
amateurs, — members of the Orange Athletic Club. 

In the big tennis building of the club a large ring 



182 An All- Around Boy. 

had been made, and this was surrounded by tiers of 
board seats, just like a real circus. Then there were 
boys to sell peanuts, candy, and lemonade, — all as 
natural as possible. 

There were tumbling, horizontal bar, and flying 
trapeze work, a funny act by three clowns, and bare- 
back riding by a professional. In fact, there was about 
everything that you see in a regular circus. There were 
two very funny parts. In one of them four trained 
elephants came out with their keeper. Each elephant 
was composed of two men covered with cloth, and they 
were pretty good imitations too. They did all kinds 
of tricks that elephants can do, and some that real ones 
can't. They danced the waltz and skirt dance, and 
stepped over their keeper as he lay on the ground, 
and when they did this they hesitated and made a loud 
trumpe ting-noise, just as real elephants do. 

Then a gentleman gave an exhibition with a trick 
horse ; and after he had gone there galloped into the 
ring what looked like a small horse with a short, fat 
man seated on it. This went tearing round the ring, 
and people began to roar when they discovered what it 
was. It consisted of one man. Fastened in some way 
to his waist was the frame of a horse, with cloth hang- 
ing down on all sides almost to the ground, to conceal 
the fact that the supposed quadruped had only two 
legs, while the two stuffed legs of the rider were dang- 
ling on each side. It was too amusing for anything to 
see that man act. He walked to music, danced, and 
once he ran entirely away with himself, to the amuse- 
ment of the audience. 



Selected Letters: Tliird Year. 183 

After the circus performance there was a concert. 
A burnt-cork fellow played on the banjo and told 
funny stories, and a man played beautifully on a lot 
of tumblers, to the accompaniment of a piano. He 
did it by wetting his hand and rubbing the top of the 
tumblers, and it was really wonderful. 

Will and I talked for about two hours last night in 
bed, before we went to sleep. We talked over every 
one in " the crowd," all the parties New Year's week, 
and the fine times we expect to have in Buffalo in 
the future. 

January 31. 

Last Thursday was a great day at our school, for on 
that day it celebrated its centennial. Pretty old 
school, is n't it ? 

We had school on Thursday until eleven o'clock, 
and then there were exercises in the chapel. We have 
a banjo club at school, as I have told you, of six 
members, and we played two pieces. In the afternoon 
there was a public meeting, with historical addresses, 
&c. in the " gym." The banjo club played there, too, 
and just as we were getting ready to go home, a gentle- 
man came up and asked us if we would be so kind as 
to play at the annual alumni banquet that evening ! 
We tried hard not to seem to jump at the chance, and 
told him we thought we could manage it, while we 
all felt like giving a wild whoop, and saying, " You bet 
we will !" Of course we did, and we were "right in it." 
We played about half-a-dozen pieces, which " took " 
very well. There was a regular orchestra there, but 



184 An All- Around Boy. 

they were n't " in it " with us. Oh, that banquet was 
" out of sight," — the best I ever got outside of. The 
toasts were fine. " Prexy " Patton of Princeton made 
an elegant speech. We caught the last train for 
Orange, and I arrived home about one o'clock. At 
school the next day, we of course regaled the other 
fellows, who were not " in it," with a full account of 
the banquet, — how fine the grub was, &c, &c. 

February 7. 

We have a very queer clock that I want to tell you 
about. You have heard of men " going on a tare," but 
did you ever hear of a clock that did ? Well, this 
clock of ours used to have a " spree " every week, just 
as regularly as any man. For two or three days of 
the week it would strike the hours wrong, but would 
soon come 'round again all right. This habit kept 
increasing, as all bad habits do, until now we can't tell 
when one spree ends and the next one begins. They 
are all merged into one continual " toot," which shows 
itself in such ways as this, at one o'clock it will strike 
anywhere from seven to eleven times, while at half- 
past one it has been known to go as high as twenty- 
four. At noon five is its favorite number, and at 
four o'clock it often strikes thirteen. 

This clock used to be especially useful in the night. 
You would wake up, not knowing die Zeit, and hear 
a clock strike eight. With a wild shout you would 
leap out of bed and begin to pull your clothes on. 
Happening to look at your watch a few minutes later, 



Selected Letters: Third Year. 185 

you would discover it to be a little past five. Then 
you would say something real naughty, and go back 
to bed again. Now, there is surely something the 
matter with a clock like that, is n't there ; and as this 
is a strictly temperance house (except Manitou ginger 
ale), we can't see where the material comes from. 
I am studying the subject of "Insanity. in Clocks," and 
am collecting material for a book on the subject. If 
you know anything about it, please inform me. 

February 22. 

Will had just received a letter from Milo ; so we 
three fellows began to write an answer to Milo, in- 
tended to be a "take off" on his. You ought to see 
it. It is really the most ridiculous and idiotic epistle 
ever penned by sane persons. It is written as though 
it was all from Will, only there are about seven differ- 
ent handwritings, and five colors of ink. The spelling 
is barbarous ; and the whole thing is sprinkled with 
unintelligible Greek, Latin, German, French, &c. The 
only fear is that poor Milo will expire before he succeeds 
in deciphering it. It took all our spare time Saturday 
to compose it, and we had " more fun than a goat " 
(George says) out of it. One of the craziest things we 
did was to get Will's two small brothers each to write 
a page or two, just as if they were writing to kids of 
their own age. We have been having great times. 
There are " scraps " every night and morning, and we 
fire each other around the beds. Will is " Grandpa," 
I am " Papa," and George is " The Kid." 



186 An Ail-Around Boy. 

It 's a circus to hear him talk. He has told us lots of 
stories about Yale, — how T L stole a grave- 
stone and put it upon the mantelpiece in his room, &c. 

We were good yesterday, and went to church twice. 
In the evening we went to hear Talmage in his new 
Tabernacle. We were left, for he was out of the city. 
That church is the biggest one I ever was in. It is 
like an immense theatre, with a double gallery, ana 
seats about six thousand people. A man with a large 
French-horn leads the singing, and they pass the col- 
lection plates around on the end of long broom-handles. 
Then the preacher had a queer squeaky voice, that 
seemed to come from somewhere underneath in the 
cellar, and the whole business appeared so ridiculous 
to us that we were kept on a continual grin. I 'm 
afraid we were not much benefited by the service. 

March 28. 

This morning at school I received a telegram from 
Papa, saying, " Meet me at the Plaza Hotel, dinner six 
o'clock." So I have rushed home from school, made 
some necessary alterations in my toilet, and have got 
to take a train in about fifteen minutes. 

That " dinner at the Plaza Hotel " means that Mr. 

D and S are there with the B s, who have 

just returned from Bermuda ; also Mr. and Mrs. E , 

Alice E , and Mr. J. M. K . 

April 3. 

We have been having considerable fun at school 
lately over a mock trial. The Class of '92 charged a 



Selected Letters : Third Year. 187 

fellow named with writing poetry that was 

injurious to the class. The case was tried before a 
jury, fee, just like a real one; and the judge was 

" Billy " F , the assistant principal. Two of the 

fellows were the prosecuting attorneys, and another 
fellow and I were the lawyers to defend . 

Well, the first part of the trial was held a week ago 
Friday afternoon. The judge called the court to order, 
the prisoner was brought in by the sheriff, and the jury 
was impanelled. Then the lawyers for the prosecution 
brought up a lot of witnesses, who testified that the 
prisoner was a nuisance, his poetry bad, &c. In the 
cross-examination we managed to get some of their 
witnesses mixed up and rattled, while others would n't 
be bluffed out of their story. 

Then the prisoner was admitted to bail, and the trial 
adjourned until last Friday. The judge fixed the bail 
at the immense sum of fifty cents, and we secured 
" Doc," the principal, to be the prisoner's bondsman. 
When " Doc " came forward to pay the fifty cents, the 

judge asked sternly, " Dr. F , are you a property 

owner in this city to the extent of four times the 
amount of the required bail ? " This " brought down 
the house." 

Well, last Friday we presented our side of the case, 
and had several witnesses on hand to tell lies of 
various magnitudes. After the " summing up " on 
both sides, which contained heart-breaking appeals to 
the jury, the judge delivered his charge, and the jury 
retired. After about fifteen minutes' deliberation, they 



188 An Ail-Around Boy. 

found the prisoner guilty on one and a half of the four 
charges ; and the judge gave the sentence that the 
sheriff should burn all the prisoner's poetry that he 
could seize, on next Tuesday afternoon in the school yard. 

The trial created no end of fun, and enjoyed 

it as much as any one. 

May l. 

I never had such hard work to study as I did last 
week. I am just beginning to get settled down to it, 
and gradually making up those lost lessons. My 
Greek is all done, and so is German, while to-morrow 
I am going to recite all the English grammar review. 
My Latin will have to wait. 

My teachers did n't say anything when I appeared 
at school on Wednesday, after my prolonged vacation. 
I guess that they are so accustomed to my being 
absent that they don't notice it. They asked me if I 
had a good time. Oh, yes ! I have got to make up 
that composition. I ought to write it to-night, but 
don't know whether I will or not. How is your essay? 

I did n't tell you, did I, what my father said when 
I arrived home on Monday. What do you think it 
was ? He was out when I arrived, but about ten 
o'clock came in. I was sitting here at his desk, and 
waited with fear and trembling to hear what he would 
say first. It was, " Well, you 've had a pretty fine 
time, have n't you ? " He did n't mention the fact that 
I had stayed two days longer than I told him I would, 
and when I went to school he wrote me a "slick" 
excuse. Pretty good "pater," isn't he? So my 



Selected Letters: Third Year. 189 

expected " lecture " did n't come, and I am safe now. 
I guess Papa couldn't find it in his heart to blame 
me, when he heard what define time I had. 

May 10. 

I had quite a jag last Wednesday. After school I 
met my mother on the train at Newark and went to 
Brooklyn with her. Arrived there, we first proceeded to 
the office of Mamma's pet dentist, who nearly murdered 
me for half an hour or so. (I don't count this a part 
of the jag.) Then we went to my aunt's, and were there 
with a few dozen other relatives who had come from 
various parts of the country to see my cousin graduate 
that evening. I started out before the others and went 

over after Will D , who knows my cousin. Will 

and I met the others at the Adelphi Academy, where 
the exercises were held. You will be surprised to hear 
what those exercises consisted of. The girls were grad- 
uates of what is called the Brooklyn School of Physical 
Culture ; and instead of reading essays, the class went 
through all kinds of marching, club-swinging, dumb- 
bell work, &c. It was really fine. I did n't know that 
girls could do so much. The work went way ahead of 
our "gym" exhibition at school, in the marching and 
club-swinging. The programme was concluded by 
some Delsarte (if that's the way you spell it) "poses " 
by girls in Greek " gowns." Early the next morning 
I started off without knowing a single lesson. The 
way I rushed through them, while riding on the ele- 
vated road, ferries, street car, and train was a caution. 



190 An All- Around Boy. 

(Three and a half pages of Greek Testament in fifteen 
minutes.) It is needless to say that my lessons for the 
day were literally " out of sight." 

Well, on Friday afternoon I went over to the den- 
tist's again. Will was to meet me there, and go home 
with me. 

Saturday we had a grand jag to Princeton. Started 
off about eight o'clock. Took electric car to Newark, 
and Pennsylvania Eailroad train from there. Train 
was packed with people going to Princeton. Lots of 
giddy-looking girls and college fellows, with a few 
mammas and papas scattered here and there as chap- 
erons. At Princeton Junction we had to change trains, 
and there was a grand scrap for seats. People had to 
hang onto the platforms and sit on the water-cooler 
and up in the bundle-racks, it was so crowded. 

Arrived at Princeton, we went directly to the Ath- 
letic Grounds, and saw some fine handicap "games," 
which lasted all the morning. 

About one o'clock we began to feel the pangs of 
hunger very keenly. We had n't brought lunch from 
home with us, and that 's where we were foolish. We 
went racing up and down, but all the restaurants were 
packed full. At last we went into a little place which 
was a bakery in the front part, and restaurant in the 
back. This was full too ; but the woman took pity on 
us, and brought us out some ham sandwiches and 
milk. To these we added doughnuts and cakes from 
the bakery, and, seated on some old tea-chests that 
happened to be there, we consumed the grub. 



Selected Letters : Third Year. 191 

Then we went back to the grounds, and at three 
o'clock the great base-ball game with Harvard com- 
menced. It was the first of the great championship 
games, and the crowd was something terrific. The 
whole freshman class came in in a body, and had seats 
just behind us. They kept things lively. Although 
Princeton was badly beaten, the yelling was kept up 
all through the game. Certain men were appointed to 
lead the cheering, and they stood out in front of the 
stands. Every half-minute one of them would call 
out, "All along the line now, a short Princeton 
yell, — Eah, rah, rah ! siss, boom, ah ! Princeton ! " 
Then another would say, " Now, fellows, let 's have a 
triple cheer for a three-bagger, — Eah, rah, rah ! 
siss, siss, siss ! boom, boom, boom ! ah, ah, ah ! Prince- 
ton, Princeton, Princeton ! " " Now a good old-fash- 
ioned yell," &c, &c. It was just one continual roar, 
and you could n't hear a word that the umpire said. 

The game itself was a disappointment ; and we left, 
just before it was finished, to catch a train. We got 
home about eight o'clock, and wanted to go to the 
Yale Glee Club concert, but were too tired. 

Will stayed over Sunday, and left early Monday 
morning. He is a slick fellow, and I like him more 
than ever. 

May 15. 

I was on hand when the postman came around for 
the last delivery yesterday afternoon ; and sure enough, 
he brought your letter, as I expected. This time you 
will not have to wait for my letter until Thursday. 



192 An All- Around Boy. 

My " littlest " sister was very naughty this morning, 
and " played hookey " from church. (Of course i" 
never used to do a thing of that kind ! ) Well, when 
I sat down at this desk to write, I found it covered 
with clippings and paper money that she had been 
manufacturing. There was also a letter that she had 
started to write to some small boy. It is so funny that 
I'll copy it for you. 

Orange, N. J., May 15, 1892. 

My dear Stewart Gray are you all Well I love you very 
much I think you aught too come to see me why dont 
you. I came to see you last week. 

Here this interesting epistle ends. That is beginning 
young for a girl of seven years, is n't it ? I asked her 
what else she was going to write, and she said she 
would n't tell me. She did n't seem to be very much 
alarmed that I had read it. 

I suppose that my Papa is spending to-day in Salt 
Lake City. You have been studying geography, so 
you know better where that is than I do. Papa is on 
his way to Portland, Oregon, where the Presbyterian 
General Assembly meets this week. After that he is 
going to Alaska, and won't get home until the first 
of July. It is a slick trip, and I wish I could have 
gone with him. He probably would have taken me if 
it hadn't been for school. 



CHAPTER XVII. 



LAST DAYS OF SCHOOL. 



The true purpose of education is to cherish and unfold 
the seed of immortality already soivn within us ; to de- 
velop, to their fullest extent, the capacities of every hind 
with which the God tuho made us has endowed us. 

Mrs. Jameson. 



CHAPTER XVII. 

LAST DAYS OF SCHOOL. 

THE last busy days of his school life I shall let 
Ealph describe in his own way through letters 
written to his young friends, convinced that they will 
prove far more interesting than any account which I 
could give in other words. 

May 22. 

There has n't been anything of interest this last 
week. At school it has been work, work, work. We 
poor fellows who are unfortunate enough to be editors 
of the school paper, which appears each year in June, 
have been rushing around like madmen, trying to 
arouse some interest in our work. Every fellow thinks 
it 's " very nice " and all that, but it 's the hardest work 
in the world to get any one to write for it. Well, by 
dint of urging and exhorting and scratching around, 
we have come out all right, in spite of " Young Doc's " 
telling us that we could n't possibly do it. Next Friday 
are our annual Spring Games, and the paper appears 
soon after that. 

My Commencement speech has n't been started yet ! 
It first has to be written. That 's the easiest part. 
Then it is chopped all to pieces by " Young Doc," alias 



196 An All- Around Boy. 

" Billy." Then you have the privilege of writing it all 
over again. If " Billy " is n't suited this time, you can 
do it again. Finally, when it is all fixed up and polished 
to " Billy's " satisfaction, it has to be learned and spouted 
over and over again to various members of the faculty, 
the trustees, &c, &c. Such is life (at the Academy) ! 

At the end of our review of American History last 
week, we had an "exam." It was a corker. Eleven 
questions and only one period of forty minutes to 
answer them in. The first question was, " Give all the 
principal dates of American history from its discovery 
to the adoption of its Constitution " ! ! 

The next was, " Give all the Presidents of the United 
States, with the dates and principal events of their 
administration " ! ! ! ! I nearly expired before I finished 
that exam. 

There is one thing I am duly thankful for, and that 
is I am through with the dentist, or rather that the 
dentist is through with me. And I still live. I went 
over to that man's office about six times, and finally on 
last Wednesday he got through. Most of the trouble 
was caused by one tooth. This tooth had a small- 
sized cavity in it, about three inches in diameter, I 
should say, and in addition it contained an extremely 
lively nerve. Now, that poor nerve had to be " killed " 
before the tooth could be filled. This " killing " is a 
very beautiful and not altogether painless process, as 
executed by our dentist ; and the enjoyment was pro- 
longed by the fact that the nerve, like a cat, seemed to 
possess nine lives. 



Last Days of School. 197 

I had great sport going over to Brooklyn about twice a 
week, — that is, it was sport until I got to the dentist's ; 
but there the fun ceased. I would skip out of school 
early, at two o'clock (that does n't seem very early to 
you), and take the train for New York. From Hobo- 
ken I would take the down-town ferry to Barclay 
Street, and then walk or take a car across the city to 
another ferry. This ferry carried me across to Brook- 
lyn, and a ride on a street car and a short walk brought 
me to my destination. That was a good deal of trouble 
to take, even for the extreme pleasure of going to a 
dentist's, was n't it ? An Orange or a Newark dentist 
will be good enough for me next time. 

I had all kinds of queer experiences during my 
trips to and from Brooklyn. You think, I know, that 
I am a very meek sort of an individual, with no 
" cheek " at all. Well, you should have seen me the 
other day on a Hoboken ferry-boat. A lot of fellows 
from Stevens Institute were on board, and all of them 
were seated in a line on the railing of the upper deck. 
(The new ferry-boats are fine, and have two decks.) 
I was also seated on the railing. Pretty soon a deck 
hand came along, and ordered everybody off. " Against 
the rules ! " Every one piled off but me. I continued 
calmly to sit there. 

The man looked at me, and I looked at him. I 
smiled a condescending sort of a smile, as if I owned 
the boat, and winked at him ; and he walked away 
without saying a word ! 

Evidently he thought that I was the son of the 
president of the company, or something of that sort. 



198 An Ail-Around Boy. 

In my travels through New York, I often passed by 
Castle Garden, where all the emigrants from Europe 
are landed. Crowds of queerly dressed foreigners 
would be wandering around the streets, with bundles 
of all sizes done up in many-colored bedquilts, and 
gazing in open-mouthed wonder at the sights of the 
great city. 

Once in a car in Brooklyn a woman had a regular 
" scrap " with the conductor, who persisted in charging 
three cents for her boy. The kid had short trousers 
and was at least seven years old, while she asserted 
that he was n't four yet. With tears she begged the 
conductor not to rob her of three cents ; but the hard- 
hearted man only said, " Now you hand over dem tree 
cents or git off de car, — see ! " Of course it ended in 
his pocketing the three cents. 

Last Friday evening my friend W A and I 

went to Newark, and played in a " Banjo and Guitar 
Orchestra," arranged by a fellow in school. It was a 
concert given for the benefit of some negro scholarship 
in Africa. Beside the banjo club, there was singing, 
violin, &c. After the thing was over, all the fellows 
in the " orchestra" went to a good place, and "filled 
up " with ice-cream and strawberry shcrt-cake, with 
the proceeds of the concert ! Poor scholarship in 
Africa ! I was n't as bad as some of the fellows ; I had 
only two dishes of ice-cream. I guess the scholarship 
could stand it, though, for the concert was crowded, 
and they must have made a lot of money. 



Last Days of School. 199 

May 29. 

Only two weeks more of school ! I think that for 
two or three days after school, college exam's, and every- 
thing is all over, I shall do nothing but sleep. After 
sleeping about sixteen hours a day for several days, I 
should feel pretty well. As it is now, I 'm the most 
sleepy-looking individual, especially on Sunday, that 
you ever saw. (It 's probably noticeable in my 
letters.) 

Last week at school was the same as the week 
before, — hustling for the school paper. " Billy " has 
taken a fiendish delight in telling us (the editors) how 
much we were behind time, and that we could n't 
possibly get the paper out. In about a week, when 
Mr. " Billy " sees the paper all done and big as life, 
he will have to back down, I guess. 

I '11 send you a copy as soon as it appears. Yes, I 
believe I have one or two articles in it. 

The Academy's annual Field Day was on Friday, and 
the grounds of the Orange Athletic Club were crowded 
with people who came to see the games. 

Very few fellows from our class were entered ; but 
even then we would have won more points than any 
other class if it had n't been for one or two " surprises." 

A very long-legged '92 fellow was expected easily to 
take first place in the hurdle-race and the high jump; 
but he had a bad case of " rattles," or something, which 
gave these two events to '94, and put them ahead of 
'92. 

W A , one of my two particular friends, 



200 An All- Around Boy. 

came in second in the one-hundred-yards dash and first 
in the quarter-mile run. 

This is the time when there are lots of base-ball, 
tennis, and all kinds of athletics going on. Yesterday 
in New York was the great contest of the Intercolle- 
giate Association of Amateur Athletes. Nearly all the 
colleges of the United States were represented by their 
best athletes. Harvard, Yale, and Princeton, each had 
over one hundred men entered. 

You have never seen a contest of this kind, have 
you ? Well, you ought to have been there. There 
were thousands of people, and all wore the colors of 
their favorite college. Oh, it was great to see that run- 
ning track, made of brick dust and level as a floor, 
and to see six or seven men toe the line, crouch for the 
spring at the word " Beady," and at the pistol-shot go 
rushing up the track as fast as a race-horse ! One 
hundred yards was run in ten seconds by a Yale man. 

Poor Princeton " was n't in it " with either Yale or 
Harvard. 

Harvard made forty-eight points, Yale thirty-eight, 
Princeton fourteen, and Columbia ten. The only other 
colleges to make anything were Williams and New 
York, which got one point each. Princeton had very 
hard luck ; and one of her best men, while running the 
" hundred " with a Harvard and a Yale man, was 
pushed by a Harvard man so that he slipped and lost 
the race. Princeton claimed a " foul," but the referee 
would n't allow it. 

A graduate of the Academy won the mile walk for 



Last Days of School. 201 

Princeton, and made a wonderful record. He broke all 
previous records by several seconds, and Princeton 
" Eahs ! " rose loud and long. 

Just think of a man's vaulting with a pole over a 
bar that is ten feet six inches from the ground ! That 
was what a Yale man did yesterday. 

And think of jumping (without any pole) over a bar 
half an inch more than six feet high. A Harvard man 
did that. 

One of the best races of the afternoon was the half- 
mile, with "Billy" Wright 1 (Yale) of Buffalo, one of 
the best men in it. The race was such a long and hard 
one that they could n't run it in trial " heats ; " so all 
the contestants, about fifteen in number, lined up in a 
double row at the line. 

When the pistol went off, Billy Wright at once 
rushed into the lead, closely followed by a Harvard 
man, with a Princeton man (a dandy) a few feet be- 
hind, and the others in a bunch. They held those posi- 
tions until within about two hundred yards of the finish, 
when they began to " let themselves out." Gradually 
the Harvard and Princeton men began to lessen the 
distance between themselves and Billy. Poor Billy 
knew they were coming, and he just worked for all he 
was worth. Nearer and nearer they came, and soon 
Harvard was even with Billy. Both were nearly dead. 
Then Harvard pushed a little ahead ; but almost at the 
very end the Princeton man, who had been saving 

1 Son of Rev. Wm. B. Wright, D.D., the successor of Ralph's 
father in the pastorate of the Lafayette Street Church, Buffalo, N. Y. 



202 An Ail-Around Boy. 

himself, spurted and broke the tape two feet in the 

lead. Billy was third. 

There were several other Buffalo fellows in the 

games, but Billy Wright was the only one to make 

anything. 

June 5. 

To-morrow afternoon our school base-ball team plays 
the most important game ever played by an Academy 
team, — with the Columbia College Freshmen. I sup- 
pose our team will be badly beaten. 

I am manager of the team ; and nearly every after- 
noon this last week I might have been seen tramping 
around the streets, like an old bill-poster, and tacking 
up a big placard every chance I got. 

Yesterday the school tennis tournament was played. 
I couldn't play on account of that troublesome old 
knee of mine. So I went down and helped umpire 
and keep score. I left about noon, when the semi- 
finals were being played. One fellow ('92) proved to 
be a better player than any one else, and no doubt he 
won the first prize, — a " Slocum Tournament " racquet. 
The doubles were to be played in the afternoon, but I 
did n't go to see them. 

I have n't so much as had a racquet in my hand this 
year ! A cat could beat me now. I heaved a great 
sigh of relief yesterday, when the last and final proof 
of our school paper was corrected and taken to the 
printer's. I spent all yesterday afternoon in Newark 
correcting proof. Did you ever read proof ? It 's no 
snap. We expect to have the paper on Tuesday. 1 11 
send you one, and mark what I wrote. 



Last Days of School. 203 

June 12. 

Instead of going to school on Monday, L stayed at 
home and wrote my Salutatory. I thought I should 
have an awful time at it ; but as soon as I settled down 
to business, I wrote it right off. I wrote most of it in 
the morning, and finished it in the evening. In the 
afternoon was the base-ball game between the Academy 
and the Columbia Freshmen. The day was rainy, and 
only cleared up a little while before the game, so that our 
attendance was about half as large as we expected. 
Nevertheless we made enough for all expenses, paid the 
guarantee to the Columbia team, and had three dollars 
left over. 

The Columbia team were regular men, about twice 
the size of our fellows ; but we held them down 
until the third inning, when our fellows got a little 
rattled, and they made three runs. 

We were just beginning to bat their pitcher, when 
the rain came down in torrents, and for fifteen minutes 
it just poured. Then the sun came out again ; but the 
diamond resembled a small mud-pond, and the game 
had to be given up. Score : Columbia four, Newark 
Academy nothing. 

Tuesday I walked into " Billy's " office with fear and 
trembling. I had my " Salut," with me, and sat down 
by "Billy's" side as he took his blue pencil from 
behind his ear and began to read it. He made only 
two or three corrections, and ordered one part 
re-written. Well, the next day I appeared with the 
ordered corrections and several additions. To my sur- 



204 An All- Around Boy. 

prise, " Billy " said it was " 0. K." I considered myself 
in luck, for I expected to re-write it about three times, 
as some of the fellows had to do, before " Billy's " fas- 
tidious taste would be suited. 

After the usual printer's delays, the school paper 
appeared on Wednesday, and sold like hot cakes. I 
sent you a copy. We editors felt like swearing at 
some of the mistakes our printer made, and we hope 
our friends will be lenient in their criticisms of the 
paper. 

Wednesday afternoon exam's began with German, 
which was a " soft snap." Virgil and Homer, the 
next day, were something decidedly the opposite ; 
while geometry, on Friday, was a "terror." 

Imagine ten of the longest and hardest propositions 
contained in the five books, and add to them two rocky 
"originals," and you have an idea of that geometry 
paper. It took me nearly the whole three hours to 
do eleven, and I was just beginning to see through 
the only one which badly stuck me, when time was 
up. 

That exam, ended school for us. The rest of the 
school has a week more. One of the fellows and I 
went to New York Friday afternoon, when all was 
over, and celebrated with soda-water. (I want to say 
here that I have n't found any New York soda-water to 
come up to Lockie's. Oh for a glass of Lockie's — 
with you ! ) 

Yesterday morning I went to school and " spouted " 
my "Salut." before "Billy." At 11.45 took the 



Last Days of School. 205 

train for Princeton with my chum K . His father 

is a Pennsylvania railroad official, and kindly got us 
passes. 

Princeton is full of people, — stacks of girls, — for 
it is Commencement time there ; and yesterday was 
the great base-ball game with Yale. 

Poor Princeton was defeated, three to one, and it 
was a sorrowful surprise to everybody but the Yale 
men. 

After being beaten twice by Harvard and twice by 
Yale, Princeton is " not in it." 

I wish you could accept that invitation I sent you 
to our Class Day on Tuesday. 

You can imagine me, about 3.15 on that after- 
noon (if you get this letter as soon as that), being 
introduced as Class Prex by "Doc" Farrand, and 
then coming forward with my knees shaking under 
me, and addressing the audience with : " Ladies and 
Gentlemen, Friends of the Newark Academy, — One 
hundred years ago, in the village which has now 
become the great city of Newark, a small school was 
started. Who of its founders, think you, imagined 
the glorious future that was before it ? Growing in the 
face of many obstacles, successful when failure seemed 
inevitable, it has continued on its steady march for 
full a century, and now, in this the centennial year, 
the Class of '92 bids you welcome to its Class Day 
exercises," &c, &c. 

After that I shall preside, in as dignified a manner 
as I can assume, over the rest of the exercises. 



206 An Ail-Around Boy. 

June 18 

Commencement (or Class Day, as we call it) passed 
off finely on Tuesday afternoon, and was a great 
success. 

I can't realize that all work is over, and that I have 
nothing to do for three months. 

College exam's all day Thursday and yesterday in 
New York were a pretty hard strain. I came home 
last night all broken up. Am all right now, though. 
I had been sitting up till midnight studying, and then 
getting up at six in the mornings lately, and that, 
combined with the long work of exam's " did me up." 
One good night's sleep, though, fixed me all right. 

June 24. 

Here goes for a letter by to-morrow's Cunard 
steamer. 

I expect that it will be about two pages long, for 
nothing has happened since Wednesday. 

I 'd like to know just what you are doing at this 
moment. If the weather out there on the ocean is 
anything like it is here, you are having a cool, pleasant 
day. What are the prospects for my winning that 
bet? I am pretty sure I shall get it, unless the 
" Noordland " strikes a pretty big storm somewhere. I 
suppose that you are now steaming along in the Gulf 
Stream. Did you notice the difference in the color of 
the ocean's water from that of the Gulf Stream ? The 
ocean is a dark green, the Gulf Stream a deep blue. 
And have you seen any of those little flying fish 



Last Days of School. 207 

that the steamer sometimes starts up as it goes through 
the Gulf Stream ? 

Have you met some nice fellows on board ? Do 
they give you good " grub " ? How do you like " Table 
d'Hote " ? 

I am very anxious to get your steamer letter telling 
about your experiences on board. I suppose they 
will have a concert or a mock trial (they always do), 
and give the proceeds to some " Sailors' Home." These 
entertainments are always a lot of fun, especially if 
they get some one with a voice like an antiquated 
tom-cat to sing, who thinks herself or himself a veri- 
table Patti. 

Yesterday morning I was in New York, and went up 
to the " Imperial " to see your father and mother, but 
they were out. I wonder if they returned to Buffalo 
last night or this morning. 



We may say of angling as Dr. Boteler said of straw- 
berries, i '■Doubtless God could have made a better berry, 
but doubtless God never did. v And so, if I might be 
judge, God never did make a more calm, quiet, innocent 

recreation than angling. 

Walton. 



CHAPTER XVIII. 

PLANNING A FISHING EXCURSION. 

RALPH had worked too hard during the closing 
weeks of school. As a consequence he was 
unable to endure the strain of the competitive exami- 
nation for entrance into Princeton, as elsewhere related, 
although he was admitted without conditions to the 
Freshman class. He was very much run down, and 
seemed to have little life or ambition. A low type of 
fever soon made its appearance, and he was confined 
for a time to his bed. He evidently needed a vacation 
that would build him up physically, and strengthen 
him for solid college work in the autumn. 

This was the prevailing argument with his parents 
in assenting to another summer's vacation in " the 
Canadian wilds." He had been so much benefited by 
former fishing-trips there, and withal was so careful 
and trustworthy, as was also his proposed companion, 
that after much hesitation consent was given him to 
go. The present chapter will take him on his trip as 
far as Buffalo. 

June 28. 

You have n't any idea what a lazy fellow I am, now 
that all work is over. I lounge around the house 
from morning till night, like a fellow with no ambition 
in life. I sleep about two thirds of the time, — to 

14 



210 An Ail-Around Boy. 

make up for the last few months. About all I do is 
to read. Once in a while I get up spunk enough to 
make one of the numerous calls I ought to make. 

I could get along very well with Ed, if I went to 
Canada with him. Don't you think so ? There will 
probably be a good deal of kicking on the part of my 
father and mother, as well as Ed's, about our going up 
there alone, — only two of us, — without a guide. Ed 
is about as good as a guide, though, and I have been 
on such trips several times too. 

So much for our Canadian trip. Ed has got to pass 
his exam's for the " Tech," and I have got to get per- 
mission, before we can go. 

About the only thing that has happened lately in 
Orange was the summer athletic games of the Orange 
Athletic Club. They were held last Saturday after- 
noon on those grounds you saw on your way out to 
Orange. Several Newark Academy fellows, including 
my two chums, ran; but none of them won anything. 

There was one man, in bright red " running-pants," 
who created a great deal of amusement. He pranced 
up and down the track in practice, before the games 
began, and he had a gait that reminded you of a jump- 
ing-jack. He ran in nearly every race, and invariably 
came in last. He did n't seem to be disheartened by 
defeat, but always showed up smiling for the next race. 

The bicycle races were the best of all, and were 
very exciting. One fellow won both of them, and 
became the champion of the county. 

Good-by. From your friend. 



Planning a Fishing Excursion. 211 

July 2. 

Dear Ed, — You may not discover who is writing 
to you without looking at the end of this letter, be- 
cause Mamma is doing the writing while I am lying- 
in bed and telling her what to say. I was taken very 
sick on Wednesday with a fever; and the doctor 
thought I would have typhoid, my temperature went 
buzzing up to 104, and my pulse was 130. 

I have a trained nurse, and she is a dandy. Between 
the doctor and her the fever has been nearly knocked 
out. At first it looked rather blue for this summer, 
for typhoid lasts for about two months ; but I feel a 
great deal better to-day, and I hope I shall be laid up 
only a couple of weeks. How were your exam's this 
week, and when will you know the result? Papa 
arrived home to-day, and I will write again soon and 
let you know the prospects. If you stay in Provi- 
dence two weeks, I hope to be well by that time, and 
I want that visit to Orange from you. 

Please write soon. Yours. 

July 4. 

Dear Ed, — I received your letter this morning, 
and suppose you have received mine too. I am gaining 
rapidly, and am able to sit up and eat a square meal. 
I shall probably be around this week. 

Papa got home Saturday, and things look pretty 
well for Canada. 

I think it will be a " go " if you will only come out 
here and talk it over. Can't you get here the first part 
of next week ? Push around in Providence, and get 
through as soon as possible. 



212 An All- Around Boy. 

The glorious " Fourth " seems to be rather slow in 
Orange. There is n't much noise or celebrating. 

I had a letter from Wid the other day ; he told about 
his smashing around Chicago in a white plug hat and 
cane. 

Hope I shall hear from you soon. Tell me as soon 

as you know, when you are coming to Orange. I am 

just as crazy for Canada as you are. I '11 be O. K. in 

about three days. 

Yours as ever. 

July 8. 

Dear Ed, — Your letter came yesterday morning, I 
found it lying on the bed when I woke up. Thanks 
for your sympathy. Yes, the doctor settled up my 
fever in great shape. 

It looked rather blue the first day or two, when I 
had the typhoid symptoms. Typhoid would have 
meant all summer in bed. Lucky I escaped. 

You can see, from the fact that I am able to write 
this letter myself, that I am a good deal better. 

Yesterday, after having breakfast in bed, I dressed 
and came downstairs for the first time. Stayed down 
all day, and did n't feel any the worse for it. I am 
down again to-day, and shall go out for a short walk. 
I am fast getting my strength back again. 

My going to Canada with you would be all right 
enough, — so says my father, — if we two weren't 
going to be alone. That 's what my father and mother 
kick principally about. I think it can be fixed all 
right. 



Planning a Fishing Excursion. 213 

Well, there is n't anything to say except that I hope 
you will finish up in Providence as soon as possible, 
and then come here. 

Of course, as I said before, I can't offer you any 
excitement here ; but we can have a quiet time, and 
get the Canada business settled. That 's the principal 
thing I am thinking about now. Papa expects you, 
and the business will then be settled — for me. 

Let me know, as soon as you decide, when you can 
come and when and where I can meet you in New 
York or vicinity. 

Joe wrote the other day that his father had cabled 
that they had arrived 0. K. after a fine passage. 

I shall be in good condition for Canada in two 
weeks. I think I ought to have as much exercise as 
that before going. 

Well, G. B. Write soon. 

July 12. 

Dear : Well, I did have a close call: from 

typhoid fever. It was a mighty lucky escape. You can 
imagine how I felt the first two or three days I was sick, 
when the doctor said I had typhoid symptoms'; that 
would have meant all my vacation, at least, in bed: 

But the doctor and the nurse evidently knew just 
exactly what to do, and the way they broke up that 
fever was a caution. For four days they made me take 
a glass of milk (boiled) every two hours ; I had to drink 
it out of a flat dish with a nozzle. Bah ! Then I was 
allowed to eat what civilized people eat. How good 
it tasted ! Since then I have been gradually improving. 



214 An All- Around Boy. 

Came downstairs last week Thursday for the first time, 
and have been out for a short walk every day. Went 
to church once on Sunday. 

Getting my strength back again seems to be rather a 
slow process, — slower than I wish it was. I suppose 
I should get strong quicker if it was n't so hot. 

I had a very amusing letter from a couple of 

weeks ago. It was written just after he got back from 

his grand jag to Chicago. is a very queer fellow. 

He did n't say a word about college or the University 
of Michigan that you spoke of, but instead he told 
about some grand hunting-trip in Dakota that he 
expects to go on in November. I wrote him a regular 
" red-hot " letter, and told him I thought he was mak- 
ing a very big mistake in throwing away the oppor- 
tunity of a college course. I told him that it was n't 
too late yet, — he could take exam's in September. 
I made a last touching appeal for Princeton, but I don't 
suppose it will do any good. 

Buffalo, N. Y., July 17. 

My dear Mamma, — Ed and I arrived all right yes- 
terday morning. Nobody knew that we were coming, 
and we walked in on them as a surprise. After break- 
fast we started out on our wheels to see " the crowd." 

In the afternoon we went to Oakfield (Ed and I). 
Went to church and Sunday-school this morning. 

We have decided to start for Canada a week from 
to-morrow (Monday). 

Now, these are the things I did n't bring ; please 
send them (by mail or express) : those heavy socks ; 



Planning a Fishing Excursion. 215 

black felt hat ; flannel shirts, — perhaps Papa's shrunk 
ones would do, — they must be of dark color so as not 
to scare deer. 

July 18. 

Here I am in Buffalo again ! and there is so much 
to tell you that I must begin right away. My last 
letter was written last week Tuesday, I think. At 
that time I was fast getting well from my sickness, 
and was expecting Ed in a few days. Well, the next 
morning a telegram came from Ed saying: "Every- 
thing passed. Will arrive Thursday morning." Was n't 
that fine, — that Ed passed all those hard exam's ? 
He was just waiting in Providence for the report of 
his exam's, and when that came he climbed out in a 
hurry. 

Thursday morning I rushed into New York as early 
as possible, meeting Ed at the Astor House. 

We came right out to Orange, and the Canadian trip 
began to be talked up at once. After some long dis- 
cussions, in which Ed and I used all the arguments 
we could think of, Papa was won over and consented 
to my going. 

During the ride up the river from the Club Satur- 
day evening we saw the most beautiful Aurora Borealis 
(if that 's the way to spell it) that has ever been seen 
here. Long white flashes came out of a transparent 
black cloud, — that is, it looked like a cloud, but you 
could see the stars right through it. These flashes 
seemed to gather at the zenith, and converge from it. 
Then the whole sky would be lit up with beds of green 



21 G An All- Around Boy. 

and pink lights. It was very wonderful. Some people 
were frightened, and thought something was going to 
happen, — the world coming to an end perhaps. It 
lasted until after we got to Buffalo. Yesterday morn- 
ing I went to Sunday-school and church like a good 
boy. Went to see your father and mother in the 

afternoon. 

July 21. 

My dear Papa, — We are making our arrangements 
to start for Canada on Monday, but may not get off 
until Tuesday. So far the expenses (mine) have been : 
" Turkey " (bag for clothes, &c), fifty cents ; my share 
of lantern, one dollar twenty-five cents ; fishing-tackle, 
one dollar ten cents. Then I have got to get a pair 
of knickerbockers and canvas leggings, and buy my 
share of the ammunition (a large item). 

Please send me a check for forty dollars, and trust 
me not to spend a cent more than is necessary. With 
love to all. 

Will write and tell you what a fine time I am 

having. Perfectly well now. 

July 21 

Well, our preparations for Canada are going on all 
the time. I think I am perfectly well now, and as 
strong as before my sickness. Oh, I 'm afraid it will 
be awfully lonesome business, — two fellows going off 
up there alone. You know we expect to go without a 
guide, and do our own work and everything. 

The latest scheme is to take Will D along, and 

get a guide too. Then we would have two tents and 
two canoes. Will is crazy to go, but I doubt if he 



Planning a Fishing Excursion. 217 

can, because of his being with George so much. Ed 
and I pitched the tent in the side yard the .other day. 
It looks fine. We bave been down town several times 
to buy stuff. This morning we got a nice lantern and 
what fishing-tackle we needed. The guns are all 
cleaned, poles and tackle put in order, and part of our 
duds packed away in the big " turkey." You have 
heard of a "turkey" before, haven't you? It is a 
long, round canvas bag, which holds about everything 
but the tents and guns. About all that remains before 
going is to take some cooking-lessons, especially in the 
manufacture of bread and johnny-cake, — the bread 
to be made out of flour, water, lard, and salt, and 
nothing else (perhaps you never heard of that kind 
of bread), and cooked in a frying-pan. 

And now about the launch ! Those naphtha launches 
are great ! It only costs about two or three dollars to 
run them all day. We started down the right-hand 
side of the island, 1 with the folding canvas canoe in tow. 
It was the first time I had ever been around the island, 
and I enjoyed it immensely. It took about two hours 
and a half to round the lower end of the island, and 
come to anchor just above the end, on the Canada side. 
We landed in the canoe, two at a time, after anchoring 
the launch about forty feet from shore (shallow 
water). Then we tramped about half a mile over into 
some woods, and ate grub. There was the slickest 
little creek there, just crowded with fine water-lilies ; 
but the rushes were so thick at the entrance that the 

1 Grand Island, above Niagara Falls. 



218 An All- Around Boy. 

canoe couldn't get in. Evidently nobody ever goes 
there. Why, we saw nine mud-turtles roosting on one 
log, and leeches and snakes were so thick we decided 
not to wade in. After grub we found a very tame 
cow, and you ought to have seen Ed milk her. We 
did n't have anything to hold the milk, so Ed began 
by milking into his own mouth. When he was satis- 
fied, I got down on my hands and knees, and then 
Gub. Oh, it was awfully funny ! I would open my 
mouth as wide as possible, Ed take aim, and, whizz ! 
a fine stream of milk would come into my eyes and 
nose, and at last reach the right spot. After getting 
as much as my mouth would hold in that position, I 
would get up, swallow it, wipe my face, and go at it 
again. Oh for a Kodak of it ! We just roared when 
Gub got down there, and were laughing so hard that 
Gub couldn't swallow his milk. 

We tried it on another cow near the river ; but the 
farmer came, and we left. Then we went out to the 
boat and went in swimming. Wow ! how cold the 
water was at first! I tried to swim, and surprised 
myself by doing six or eight strokes. We got to the 
city about 7.30. The three clubs looked very de- 
serted as we passed them, especially Falconwood. 

This morning we played tennis on the E ■ Court, 

and later went down town. Eixed up all our rods and 
fishing-tackle this afternoon, and about five o'clock rode 
over to see A , who was in the city for the after- 
noon. The H s are really going in two weeks, 

after almost deciding to stay until September. It's 



Planning a Fishing Excursion. 219 

too bad, I think. Went down to the P s to dinner 

this evening. They had come into the city- for a day 
or two. I imagine that the party over there this year 
is not quite so jolly as last year, — not so many young 
people. I have very pleasant memories of Wynetka 
last summer. 

July 24. 

Everything is ready for the start to Canada to-mor- 
row morning at nine o'clock ; but if a certain letter 
from Orange, containing a check, does not arrive in the 
first delivery, we may have to wait until Tuesday. 
See ? There is n't any hurry about going, though, for 
the boys last year did n't start until August. 

Speaking of August reminds me that one week from 
to-day is the last day of July ! Vacation is flying 
away fast. 

Ed and I have been busy fellows this past week. 
Guns had to be cleaned, tent set up, fishing-tackle 
looked over and mended, knives sharpened, rods re- 
paired, and lots and lots of little things attended to. 
Many is the trip we have made down town ; and each 
time after we got home, we have thought of several 
things we forgot to do. 

T' other day we took several knives down to be 
sharpened. At the store where such things are done 
they said they could n't finish them in time, so we 
chased up a man we had seen wheeling his cart along 
Main Street. Caught him in front of " Wonderland," 
and Ed pulled out his bowie hunting-knife from his 
cartridge belt, and asked the man how much he would 



220 An All -Around Boy, 

charge to sharpen it. Well, you ought to have seen 
that man when he saw that big carving-knife. He 
looked at us as though he thought we were wild 
Indian scalpers or cow-boys. All the time he was 
sharpening it, his cart was the centre of attraction 
for a crowd of street-urchins, who would look first 
at the knife and then at us, wondering what we 
could be. 

Yesterday Ed and I went into the Iroquois barber- 
shop, and had some of our superfluous hair taken off. 
I had a regular " bar-tender's cut," — clippers on the 
sides and back, and just enough hair left on top for a 
" part " of two inches in front. Ed was very " dudey," 
and had his cut so as to part all the way. Oh, I look 
real " tough." I was almost ashamed to go out to-day, 
and wanted to take a back seat in church. 

We are going to take with us to-morrow the tent, 
" turkey," two rifles (both Ed's), and our poles. We 
shall start out in our knickerbockers, flannel shirts, 
rough shoes, &c, and no doubt we shall be pretty 
tough-looking specimens (not so much so as when 
we come back). 

All we take with us in the way of grub is coffee 
and condensed milk, and three jars (small) of Liebig's 
beef extract. The rest of the grub we shall get when 
we start out from Bala, on Muskoka Lake. 

The " turkey " is a big round bag, made of strong 
canvas. When filled, as it is now, it looks like an 
immense stuffed sausage. It holds everything, — 
from old shoes and fishing-tackle to condensed milk. 



Planning a Fishing Excursion. 221 

You would have roared to see us pack it this after- 
noon. First came a preliminary layer of -mosquito- 
netting and underwear ; then the lantern, surrounded 
by stockings and sweaters ; then Ed called for " a layer 
of pants," and on top of these were the cans of con- 
densed milk, wadded in with towels. Cartridges and 
fishing-tackle came next, mixed in with old clothes, 
hats, &c. The blankets, with coffee-bags in the mid- 
dle, were on top, with rubber blankets spread over 
them. Ha, ha ! What a mixture ! 

We are going to-morrow by way of Lewiston, so as 
not to get to the Canadian custom-house until we reach 
Toronto instead of at the Bridge. We have a letter from 
the Collector of Customs here, and he told us that the 
men at Toronto were less strict. What a sad business 
it would be if they should insist on our emptying the 
" turkey " ! Oh, horrors ! 

Yours. 



It is a quiet glen, as you may see, 

Shut in from all intrusion by the trees, 

That spread their giant branches, broad and free, 

The silent growth of many centuries ; 

And make a hallowed time for hapless moods, 

A sabbath of the woods. 

William Gilmoke Simms. 



CHAPTEE XIX. 

AGAIN IN A CANADIAN CAMP. 

July 24. 

MY dear Mamma, — Our packing is all done, 
tickets bought to Toronto, and everything 
ready to start at nine o'clock to-morrow morning. 
But I waited too long before telling Papa how much 
money I wanted, and so his letter has not come yet. 
If it comes we can start to-morrow, if it is in the first 
delivery ; otherwise we shall probably wait until Tues- 
day, although Mr. E has offered to lend me the 

money. That package came all right, and contained 
just what I wanted. Thanks very much. The big 
slouch hat and heavy socks are " out of sight ; " flan- 
nel shirts a fine fit. 

All the week Ed and I have been busy getting 
ready. All our stuff is contained in a big bag called 
a "turkey" (remember that name, because I shall 
speak of the " turkey " in my letters). I said it held all, 
but I mean everything except the tent, guns, and rods. 

Ed has decided to take both his rifles, instead of 
a rifle and a shot-gun. The duty on the shot-gun 
would be too much. So Ed will have his new big 
forty-calibre rifle, and the smaller thirty-two calibre 



224 An Ail-Around Boy. 

will be for me. We take about two hundred cart- 
ridges each. 

I have had a pair of corduroy short pants made. 
Cost four dollars. They are just the thing for 
" roughing it." 

The only things in the line of grub that we take 
from here are coffee (four pounds) and condensed milk 
(six cans). Everything else we get at Bala. You 
have our address, have n't you ? — care of Tom Currie, 
Bala, Muskoka Lake, Ontario, Canada. 

The only way we shall have of getting mail will 
be to come to Bala (several miles) from wherever we 
are camped. We shall probably have to make two 
or three trips to Bala for grub, and can get mail then. 
Whatever we don't get will be there waiting for us 
when we return. Now don't let this keep you from 
writing, because letters from home will be mighty 
welcome up there. 

I have been busy all the time. Went around Grand 
Island on an all-day trip on Tuesday. We went with 

a Mr. P , friend of Ed's, — in his naphtha launch. 

Fine time. 

Next afternoon I went down to the Island Club 
to visit Allie H . Came home in the evening. 

Have played tennis several times with Will D 

at the s\ My knee is all right, and I am feeling 

finely. 

Glad to hear that E is doing so well. Hope 

Grandma is much better now. 

With love to all. 






Again in a Canadian Camp. 225 

Toronto, July 25. 

My dear Mamma, — Your letter, containing- Papa's 
check, arrived by the first delivery this morning, and 
we started from Buffalo at nine o'clock. Went to 
Lewiston by N. Y. Central, and then by steamer to 
Toronto, — a fine sail across Lake Ontario. Arrived 
here about one o'clock, and have been wandering 
around the city. We leave on Grand Trunk train at 
11.20 to-night. Go on a sleeper to Gravenhurst, 
where sleeper is switched off and waits till morn- 
ing. Then we go by boat to Bala. Get canoe and 
grub there, and start down river. Write often. 

Love to all. 

In Camp on Moon River, July 29. 

Dear Papa and Mamma, — This is our third day in 
camp. We got to Bala Tuesday afternoon, pitched 
our tents, had supper at Tom Currie's, and bought our 
supplies. Started out after breakfast Wednesday 
morning, and came about seven miles down the river. 
Were delayed by rain and did n't get here until four 
o'clock. Five short portages. We have a man with 
us to cook ; but he has to return to Bala to-day. 
We shall stay here over Sunday, then go up to Bala 
for our mail, and then down the muskosh Kiver. Our 
special object here is muskalonge. No luck so far. 
Weather very rainy. Flies and mosquitoes awful. 
Good time, though. Will write Sunday. 

With love. 



15 



226 An All- Around Boy. 

MtTSKALONGE CAMP, MOOX RlVER, CANADA, 

July 81. 

My dear Papa and Mamma, — Sunday is just the 
same as other days here in the " wilds " ; and if we 
had not kept track, we should not know that it was 
the day of rest. Our camp life " on our own hook " 
has fairly begun. The man who came down with us 
went back to Bala Friday morning, and left us to 
look after ourselves. This man was a "fire-ranger," 
whose duty it was to look for forest fires along this 
river and the Muskosh. 

He was at Bala when we got there, and we took him, 
on Tom Currie's recommendation, to help us get 
settled, paying him two dollars. 

He was a fair cook, but rather lazy, and we were 
not sorry when he had to return to Bala. 

Well, I must tell you how we got here from Toronto. 
We had to hang around Toronto from one o'clock 
Monday afternoon until 11.20 that night. Spent 
our time in carrying our guns, " turkey," &c, from 
the wharf to the Grand Trunk depot, an imposing 
structure containing three whole tracks. Do you 
remember it, Papa ? It is on the English plan, — 
waiting-rooms, baggage-rooms, &c, on each side, — so 
as to confuse people probably, for one side looks just 
like the other. There are four baggage-rooms, one in 
each corner, and you usually have to go to each in 
succession before finding your baggage. 

After lugging our baggage over, we had some grub 
in the lunch-room of the station, and then started out 



Again in a Canadian Camp. 227 

to find a sail-maker. Our turkey had been badly 
torn on the way to Toronto, and we had' to have 
another one made, of much heavier canvas. Man 
said he would have it done in two hours, and we 
went tramping around the streets to speud the time. 
Bought a hatchet, an axe,- and some other things, 
and patronized a bakery for supper, which we ate 
on the street. Every one we passed stared at us, 
and turned around to look. What tramps we were ! 
Knickerbockers, old shoes, flannel shirts, carrying 
axes on our shoulders and bundles under our arms, 
and chewing on a big roll apiece. Ha, ha ! Having 
nothing to do, we went to the Grand Trunk Station, 
and had great sport watching how they do things 
there. It took ten minutes, by the clock, for the 
ticket-agent to get our tickets. On the G. T. R every 
one of the employees runs things to suit himself. 
You ask six men what time a certain train starts, and 
you receive a different answer from each. Then you 
average up and get somewhere near the right thing. 
If you have any baggage, you have to follow it right 
up and keep hold of it all the time, and then carry it 
to the train on your own back. Otherwise you may 
not see it again for several days, in spite of checks. 

The train came into the station about 10.30, and 
we found our berths in the sleeper at once, after mak- 
ing sure that our turkey and tent went aboard. At 
last, about midnight we started. The sleeper was a 
Pullman, — one of those half-sleepers, — with six 
berths and the rest common seats. Sometime in the 



228 An All- Around Boy. 

night we arrived at Gravenhurst, where our car was 
side-tracked. At seven the porter woke us, and soon 
we were hitched onto a freight train, which carried us 
to Muskoka Wharf. 

The steamer soon started, and we found that we 
ought to have made connection for Bala at Brace- 
bridge, beyond Gravenhurst. The steamer we took did 
not go to Bala, and so we had to pile off at Beaumaris 
and wait till four o'clock for a Bala boat. We fooled 
around and did nothing, except catch a few bass off 
some rocks. Had dinner at the hotel. Papa will re- 
member Beaumaris as the place where he and I 
stayed when we were at Muskoka. I recognized the 
hotel proprietor at once, but couldn't think of his 
name. We arrived at Bala about five o'clock. Shook 
hands with Tom Currie (the hotel proprietor, a big 
man about six feet four) and " Sam " (who runs the 
boat-house and ice-cream parlor, and who got our 
canoe for us) on the wharf. Currie's hotel, another 
smaller one, the boat-house, a little church, " the store," 
and a few shanties comprise the city of Bala. The 
post-office is in the store, where can be bought any- 
thing from a toothpick to a steam piano, new or 
second-hand. 

The first thing we did was to pitch our tent and fix 
our camp for the night, with ferns for bedding. Had 
supper at Tom's. It was our last square meal ; and we 
ate a lot, I tell you. After supper we bought our sup- 
plies at the store, of course forgetting two or three such 
necessary things as potatoes and oil for our lantern. 



Again in a Canadian Camp. 



229 



Next morning, Wednesday, we cooked our own 
breakfast, — ham, oatmeal, bread, coffee, and condensed 
milk. Packed up and started down the Moon Eiver 

about nine o'clock. The fire-ranger, H , went with 

us in his own canoe. Tom told us that this fellow 
was about the only available guide ; so we took him. 

I will try to draw a rough map of Bala and the two 
rivers, to show you where we are. 




We came down the Moon Eiver for the especial pur- 
pose of catching muskalonge ; that is why we have 
named our camp " Muskalonge Camp." 

The boys last year here caught a twenty-two 
pounder. We have had poor luck and rainy weather, 
and have only caught one, about four pounds in weight. 

There are five or six portages in the seven miles be- 
tween here and Bala. Some are rather hard, while the 
canoe can be pushed through others by wading. 



230 An Ail-Around Boy. 

Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday mornings were 
rainy, but since then the weather has been fine, — warm 
days and cool nights. Our camp is very comfortable, 
with the blankets spread on a thick layer of hemlock 
boughs. Everything is kept in the tent, even fire- 
wood, to keep it from rain and the heavy dews. 

Pickerel, pike, and a few black bass can be caught 
at any time ; and these supply us with fish. 

We ought to have had venison to-day. Ed had an 
easy shot at a deer last night, but had "buck ague" 
so badly that he missed it. We have seen two other 
deer, but no more shots. This is too near Bala for 
killing deer, and laws are stricter than last year. But 
wait until we get down on the Muskosh, where deer 
are four times as thick as here ! 

There are lots of other things to shoot here, — such 
as squirrels, porcupines, and birds, — but we only fire 
at deer. 

Oh, it is slick, — paddling up the river (which is 
lined with marshy places) with the chance of seeing 
a deer at any time ! 

To-morrow morning we expect to leave here, taking 
our stuff up to the fork of the Moon and Muskosh 
Rivers. There we shall leave it and paddle on up to 
Bala, three miles, to get our mail, post our Sunday let- 
ters, and buy a few things. Then, after dinner at 
Tom's, we shall go down the river, branching off down 
the Muskosh. Oh, how good it will be to get letters 
to-morrow from home ! 

I hope all are now well at home, and that Mamma 
and the children are enjoying Lake Hopatcong. 



Again in a Canadian Camp. 231 

I don't know when I can write or receive letters 
again after to-morrow. Down on the Muskosh.we shall 
be about twelve miles from Bala, and may not go there 
again until on the way home. We shall probably be 
up here about two weeks longer. I will write as often 
as possible. 

Good-by, with love to all. 

I have learned to paddle, and can swim several 
strokes. 

Bala, Aug. 2, 1892. 

Dear Papa, — We were kept here by rain yester- 
day afternoon, and spent the night at Tom Currie's 
hotel. Eeceived your letter enclosing postal from 
Europe. It is raining this morning, but we must start. 
If you should want me for anything during next two 

weeks, Mr. E of Buffalo has full directions from 

Ed how to find us. Good-by. 



Thou hast honored m,y child by the speed of Thy choice, 
Thou hast crowned him with glory, overwhelmed him with 

mirth ; 
He sings up in heaven with his sweet-sounding voice, 
While I, a sainfs mother, am weeping on earth. 

Frederick William Faber. 



CHAPTEE XX. 



A STUNNING BLOW. 



n^HE morning of Wednesday, Aug. 3, 1892, I 
passed in my study, planning a sermon for the 
following Sunday. The subject had particularly inter- 
ested me. The evening before the theme for the weekly 
prayer-meeting of the church had been " Trouble and 
Deliverance." There was a deep spiritual tone to 
the services which impressed all present, and led me 
at the close to say : " Let us remember, dear friends, 
that the blessed truths upon which we have been 
dwelling we shall all have occasion sooner or later to 
test. To some of you trouble, deep and dark, has 
already come ; and with it has come also sure deliver- 
ance from the hand of the Lord. You know the secret 
meaning of a subject like this. Others of us have 
journeyed along life's pathway with scarcely a cloud 
to darken the heavens above us. But it will not 
always be so. Trouble is sure to overtake us. Even 
now some of us may be sitting under the shadow 
of a great grief about to fall with crushing weight 
upon us. God grant that when it falls we shall 
know where to find deliverance ! " 



234 An Ail-Around Boy. 

The meeting made such an impression on me that 
Wednesday morning I decided to put aside the subject 
previously selected for a sermon, and pursue the line of 
thought suggested by the discussion of the previous 
evening. Thus the morning passed in arranging my 
thoughts and preparing a plan for the sermon. 

In the afternoon I seated myself at my desk to 
begin the work of composition. I wrote the text: 
2 Cor. i. 3, "The God of all comfort." 

Before another word was written there came a knock 
at my door, and a telegram was handed me. It read 
as follows : — 

Buffalo, N. Y., Aug. 3, 1892. 

My son telegraphs me from Bracebridge " Kalph gone 
over Squaw Shute Falls," which makes me fear he is 
drowned. Leave for Bala this evening. 

E. W. E . 

The crushing grief had fallen. While I was speak- 
ing the evening before, the lifeless body of my boy — 
my only son, my pride and joy — was lying beneath 
the cruel waters of the Muskosh Biver. 

I shall not attempt to describe my emotions. I 
could not do it, if I desired. With a pain around my 
heart, and a stunned feeling which only those who 
have passed through similar experiences can under- 
stand, I made hasty arrangements to take the first 
train to Buffalo and thence to Canada. Leaving the 
poor broken-hearted mother, I hurried away. By ar- 
rangement with the operator, telegrams were repeated 
to me along the route ; but they contained no further 



A Stunning Blow. 235 

news, — only a hope, to which I clung with desperation, 
knowing all the time that it was useless so to do. 

Arriving in Buffalo early Thursday morning, friends 
were waiting at the station to do all in their power to 
comfort and aid me. There was nothing to do but wait 

for the train to Toronto that afternoon. Mr. E 

telegraphed from Bracebridge that he could learn noth- 
ing additional. The telegram had been sent there 
from Bala, twenty-five miles away across the lake, by 
boat, — the only means of communication. 

How hard it is to do nothing when every instinct 
prompts to action ! But at last the time came to start 
for the station. A friend who had taken me to his home, 
then said that as he had business in Toronto, he would 
accompany me there. He knew by my looks — I 
could say nothing — how glad I was of his company. 
For years we had been the warmest friends. As a 
trustee of Lafayette Street Church, of which for nine 
years I had been the pastor, I had learned to prize his 
wise counsels and generous friendship. Two years be- 
fore we had travelled together in Europe ; and only the 
year before I had been permitted, though not then pastor 
of the church, to be with him when with breaking heart 
he laid forever from his sight one of the sweetest and 
noblest women whom God ever gave to be the wife 
of any man. 

At Toronto he bought two tickets for Bracebridge 
Plainly enough I saw that he had no intention of leav- 
ing me to take the remainder of the sad journey alone. 
Such kindness seemed to me too much. I could not 



236 An All- Around Boy. 

feel that it was right for him to leave his business for 
my sake. 

But protestations were in vain. "If it takes a 
month to find Kalph," he said in a tone which admitted 
no contradiction, " I shall stay with you." God be 
praised that there are such friends ! 

We reached Bracebridge at 4 a. m. on Friday. At 

six the boat sailed for Bala. Mr. E and Ed were 

waiting there on the dock. But the body had not 
been found. For two days willing hands had dragged 
the river in vain. Again the only thing to do was to 
wait — for the body to rise. 

The drowning had occurred some eight or nine miles 
below Bala. I could not rest until I had seen the 
place. Accordingly, with Ed and a guide, I started 
down the river in a canoe. As we stood on the shore 
opposite the awful place, Ed told me the sad story in 
substance as follows : — 

" After setting up our tent over there, and getting 
everything ready for the night, we thought we would 
come back on this side and do some fishing. It was 
then about six o'clock. 1 You know that last summer 
we boys 2 had our camp on this identical spot, and we 
crossed and recrossed the river hundreds of times, — 
the guide saying there was no danger. 3 We got into the 
canoe to paddle across ; and suddenly, I don't know how 

1 Tuesday evening, Aug. 2, 1892. 

2 Ralph was not with them on that trip. 

3 The fatal mistake this time was that the water was about one and 
a half feet higher than the previous summer, which made the current 
much stronger. 



A Stunning Blow. . 237 

or why, it capsized. We were both thrown into the 
water. As we came up, Ealph grabbed me. He was 
strangling, and evidently thought he was going to 
drown. He got me round the neck, and we both 
began to go down. Not a word was said, but he saw 
what the result would be, and of his own accord loos- 
ened his hold, leaving me free to help him, with him- 
self aiding. We should both have been drowned but 
for his own voluntary relaxing his hold upon me. 

"Far quicker than it takes me to tell it, we 
were struggling in the rapids you see there. My aim 
was to get out of them into the stiller water, and then 
we could easily reach land. But do what I could, we 
could n't escape the clutch of the current. I held on 
to Ealph until we were within thirty or forty feet of 
the falls. There was no longer a hope of saving him. 
It was a question if I could save myself. I let him 
go, and got to land myself I don't know how. I only 
remember that I was utterly exhausted, and lay there 
for some time — I don't know how long — unconscious. 
Then I crossed the island on which I had landed, 
swam the other branch of the river, roused some 
Indians living near by, sent them to search the river, 
and started on foot for Bala, which I reached about 
two o'clock in the morning." 

Every word of the story went through my heart like 
a knife, yet I would not have missed a word for thou- 
sands of dollars. " Ed," I said, " I want you to know, 
first of all, that I do not blame you in the least." 
" Thank you, oh, thank you for saying that ! " the 



238 An Ail-Around Boy. 

noble fellow replied ; " I have been hoping, oh, so 
anxiously, for just those words!" and he burst into 
tears. " And more than that," I continued, " I want 
to thank you with all my heart for your noble effort 
to save my darling boy." 

We went below the falls, and paddled up and 
down the river, but all in vain. The waters were as 
peaceful and uncommunicative as though my heart's 
treasure was not beneath them. 

I arranged with some neighboring Indians to have 
two booms stretched across the river to prevent the 
body, when it rose, from being carried down stream. 
They also agreed to patrol the river day and night, 
and start with the body as soon as it was found for 
Bala. 

Ed volunteered to stay down and oversee the work. 
This I wanted to do myself ; but the fear of bad news 
from Ralph's poor mother led me to accept Ed's offer, 
and accordingly I returned to Bala, the guide paddling 
me up. 

As I reached the hotel, Mr. E was about to 

start for the boat, having decided that it was better 
for him to go, that he might arrange for sending up a 
metallic coffin. This could not be found nearer than 
Toronto. Erom there it was sent under the care of 
a special messenger, to avoid the possibility of any 
delay through the carelessness of railroad employe's. 

It came none too soon. At eight o'clock Saturday 
morning Ed went over the patrol ; and there just below 
the falls was the precious body floating round and 






A Stunning Blow. 239 

round in an eddy. The Indians were quickly notified, 
and the start up the river was made. It was a hard 
trip, with its seven portages, and it was not till half- 
past two in the afternoon that Bala was reached. 

At half-past five the boat came in with the casket 
upOn it. There was doubt whether it would wait for 
us to do the necessary w r ork before embarking. We 
had therefore engaged a " tramp " boat which had 
come in just before the regular steamer. At seven 
we started, reaching Gravenhurst at 9.30 Saturday 
evening. There was no train for twenty-six hours. 

We may omit the trying experiences which fol- 
lowed. It is enough to say that on two different 
freight-trains and by riding all night we reached 
Toronto about ten o'clock Sunday morning, in time 
for the express train for Buffalo. 

It is due to the officials of the Grand Trunk Kail- 
road at Gravenhurst, Allendale, and Toronto also, 
to say that they showed us every courtesy, and 
did everything in their power to aid us, making 
up a special freight-train at Allendale for our 
accommodation. 

Just one incident on the way from Toronto to 
Buffalo should be recorded. On the Canadian side of 
Suspension Bridge the train halted for a moment. 
A lady sitting opposite me in the parlor car said to 
her husband, " Is n't it wonderful that this vast volume 
of water pours, year after year and generation after 
generation, over these falls and never stops ? Still I 
suppose physical laws are sufficient to account for it. 



240 An Ail-Around Boy. 

There is no need of believing in a personal God. As 
I look at it, Ingersoll is much nearer the truth than 
the preachers who have so much to say about 
God." 

From the moment that fearful telegram had reached 
me on the previous Wednesday, a fierce battle had 
been going on in my heart, — a battle to save my 
faith in God. Possibly, had it not been for the text, 
" The God of all comfort," on which I had spent the 
morning, the conflict would not have been so severe ; 
but then the victory would not have been so complete. 
At noon, on Wednesday, I thought I had proved con- 
clusively that God was the God of all comfort. The 
telegram shattered my proofs, as a stone shatters 
glass. I cried out for comfort, but there was none. 
My experience was proving the text false ; and if 
that text was false, many other passages of Scripture 
were false. What dependence, then, could be placed 
on any part of the Bible ? And if God was not the 
God of comfort, how could I be sure that He was a 
God of love and grace ? 

For the thousandth time I was going over this 
subject, as in the quiet which followed the stopping 
of the train at Suspension Bridge the words quoted 
above fell upon my ear. Their effect was something 
wonderful. I can never forget it. They seemed like 
a flash of lightning in a dark night, revealing to me 
the hideous precipice of unbelief near which I had 
been wandering, and over which I had been in danger 
of falling. 



A Stunning Blow. 241 

There was a little boy by the lady's side. Without 
premeditation, and scarcely knowing what I was 
doing, I said to her, " Will you pardon me if I ask 
you a question ? " 

" Certainly," she replied. 

" I want to ask if the little boy by your side is your 
son," I said. 

" Yes, my only child," she answered. 

" I thought as much," I continued. " Would you 
be interested to know that my only son, or what is 
left of him to me, is in a coffin in the baggage-car 
ahead of us ? He was drowned last Tuesday, and I 
am taking him home for burial. I cannot tell you how 
dear he was to me. My heart is breaking. The time 
may come — I trust it will not, but it may come — 
when you will be following your only child to the 
grave. If it ever does come, what comfort do you 
expect to find in physical laws or in the teachings of 
Ingersoll ? You will want then a personal God who 
can comfort you. Out of depths which no tongue can 
describe, and which no one who has not experienced 
them can appreciate, I want to tell you that I believe 
in God, — a God of infinite comfort for all sorrowful 
souls that will look to Him." 

It was a strange way, but it was God's way of re- 
vealing the truth to me. I was speaking more for 
myself than for the woman. Let us hope that my 
words were a blessing to both. With tears in her 
eyes, she came to me later, giving me opportunity 
to impress the truth still more deeply on her heart. 

16 



242 An Ail-Around Boy, 

And as for myself, it was the breaking of the light. 
As I recall the incident, I doubt if I felt fully all 
that my words implied. But at that moment it is 
certain that the tide of battle turned ; and when a 
month later I preached to my people on " the God of 
all comfort/' though the pain around the heart had 
not ceased, the enemy had been routed. It was not 
the sermon I first planned. I had learned something 
about the text since that Wednesday morning. 



CHAPTEK XXI. 



GOD'S ACRE. 



God's acre ! Yes, that blessed name imparts 
Comfort to those who in the grave have sown 

The seed that they had garnered in their hearts, 
Their bread of life, alas! no more their own. 

Longfellow. 



CHAPTER XXI. 

god's acre. 

THE funeral services were held in dear old 
Lafayette Street Church on Tuesday, August 9, 
just a week after he was drowned. The family lot 
was in Buffalo, and already held the precious dust of 
Ralph's grandfather and grandmother, the Rev. and 
Mrs. Samuel N. Robinson. 

Rev. William B. Wright, D.D., the pastor of the 
church, assisted by Rev. T. Ralston Smith, D.D., 
officiated. By request no remarks were made. Every- 
thing was simple and unostentatious, — just what 
Ralph himself would have wished. The church was 
filled with sympathizing friends, not a few of whom 
had come from Orange, N. J., and Westfield, N. Y. It 
was impossible to restrain the loving gifts of flowers, 
as abundant as they were beautiful, which came from 
friends in Buffalo and Orange and from Newark 
Academy. 

The boys of " the crowd " in Buffalo, with one of 
his intimate friends in Orange, acted as pall-bearers ; 
while his special girl-friends lined the grave with 
roses, and covered the earth with evergreens and 
flowers. 



246 An All- Around Boy. 

And this was the end. No, not the end : — 

I heard a voice from heaven, saying unto me, Write : 
Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from hence- 
forth ; yea, saith the spirit, that they may rest from 
their labors, and their works do follow them. 

I am the resurrection and the life : he that believeth 
in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And who- 
soever liveth and believeth in me shall nevek die. 






CHAPTEE XXII. 



CONCLUSION. 



(Taken from the "little book," mentioned in the following chapter.) 

Friday, August 26. 
We live in deeds, not years ; in thoughts, not breaths ; 
In feelings, not in figures on a dial. 
We should count time by heart-throbs. He most lives 
Who thinks most, feels the noblest, acts the best. 

Bailey. 

Saturday, August 27. 
To live in hearts we leave behind, 

Is not to die. 

Campbell. 

There is a world above, 

Where parting is unknown ; 

A whole eternity of love 

Formed for the good alone ; 

And faith beholds the dying here 

Translated to that happier sphere. 

Montgomery. 



CHAPTEE XXII. 

CONCLUSION. 

FEOM the multitude of letters, full of the most 
loving and helpful sympathy, which poured in 
upon us during the weeks following Ealph's death, 
and for which we felt profoundly grateful, we make 
only a few quotations : — 

" On his birthday I put some roses on his grave, a 
beautiful large bouquet at the head and a smaller one at 
the foot. Mamma had brought a fine stalk of Japan lilies, 
and she laid that on his grave. We all miss him so 
much. I think of him most of the time, but try not to, 
but it is pretty difficult." 

" Ealph was one of those rare fellows that the more 
you know them the more you respect and admire them." 

" Have you seen the little book ? How lovely it was 
of him to give so much time to it ! Dear boy, how pre- 
cious it is ! What beautiful selections ! I have often 
repeated the verse from Dryden for August 2d, — it seems 
almost prophetic." 

The " little book " referred to in this letter was one 
which Ealph made for a young friend who was to pass 
the summer in Europe. By experience he knew how 
welcome anything was, from home when one was in 



250 An Ail-Around Boy. 

far-off lands. So he prepared this little calendar, with 
some quotation from favorite authors and from the 
Scriptures for each day of the trip. In it is this verse, 
which he calls " my favorite Bible verse " : " Trust in the 
Lord forever ; for in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting 
strength." 

The lines from Dryden, which were placed under 
the date of August 2, the day he was drowned, which 
seemed ''almost prophetic," are, — 

" With equal minds what happens let us bear, 
Nor joy nor grieve too much for things beyond our care." 

One of the girls of " the crowd " wrote from the far 

West : — 

" One incident I must tell you which illustrates 
the way he maintained his Christian character. It was 
Saturday night, and he was going to a party with me. 
When he came for me, he said that if I did not care, he 
would like to leave there by 11.30 o'clock, as the next 
day was Sunday, and he wanted to be home by twelve." 

The same letter adds : — 

" When he left me that last Sunday afternoon, I stood 
on the veranda and watched him as he walked down the 
street, and thought to myself what a noble boy he was, 
and what a good and true man he would make. 

" His influence on me was very strong. I am sure all 
the girls and boys felt it too. He was always the same ; 
and although he was just as ready as any of us to have 
fun, there was something about him that won our trust 
and respect. I honestly do not think that any one ever 
inspired me with more trust and respect than dear Ralph. 



Conclusion. 251 

I know that his Christian influence was always felt 
among us, and that it is still with us, and. can never be 
forgotten. 'The crowd' are all better for this sweet 
Christian life, and for the friendship which each of us 
had with him. Not only were l the crowd ' so influenced 

by his life, but others who knew him. Will D , for 

one, told me that Ralph lived the purest life of any of 
his associates, and had helped him many times to do 
right." 

At a meeting of the Class of '92, held at the Newark 
Academy, Sept. 14, 1892, the following resolutions 
were adopted: — 

Whereas, it has been God's will to remove from our 
number Ealph Robinson Green, the President of our 
Class, whose ability and attainments, giving promise of 
a most brilliant and successful career, had earned our 
highest respect and admiration, and whose personal qual- 
ities had bound him to us by the closest ties of feeling 
and friendship : 

Resolved, that we put on record our deep and heartfelt 
sorrow at the loss of our classmate, whose pure and 
unassuming life during the time that we were associated 
with him so clearly showed his character as a sincere 
Christian, and an earnest conscientious student. 

Resolved, further, that we tender our sincere sympathy 
to his family, assuring them that their deep sorrow is 
ours also, and that we shall forever fondly cherish his 
memory with all the tenderness of personal friendship 
and admiration. 

( Louis H. Gray, 
Com. < Kenneth R. Kingsbury, 
( William T. Lyle. 



252 An Ail-Around Boy. 

" Our Church at Work," a paper issued in the interest 
of Lafayette Street Church of Buffalo, N. Y., contained 
the following : — 

"Our hearts were saddened by the news in early 
August that Ralph Robinson Green, the only * son of our 
former pastor, had been drowned in the Muskoka Lake re- 
gion. ' Robin' Green, as he was to most of us familiarly 
known, was a particularly bright and promising boy. He 
had always been his loving father's constant companion. 
They had together made home a veritable habitation of 
love and purity ; they had together more than once trav- 
elled abroad at the head of happy companies of tourists ; 
their lives had seemed to us to be more completely knit 
together than is common even between father and son. 
Gradually the boy had grown and matured into man- 
hood, and expected in the autumn to begin his college 
course at Princeton. With a beautifully promising life 
of usefulness opening before him, but a short time be- 
fore his death, he had started from Buffalo to enjoy the 
pleasures of the wild Muskoka camping-grounds, full 
of hope and courage. How different, by contrast, that 
other journey over the same route a little later, when the 
stricken father and his generous and thoughtful compan- 
ion from Buffalo hastened to obey the sad summons ! 
Oh the heartache and pain of those hours of suspense, 
hoping against hope that ' Robin ' might still be alive ! 
How unspeakably sad the meeting of father and all that 
was mortal of his only son ! 

" We could wish for the sweetest of voices and most 
sympathetic of words to bear our sorrow to the very 
hearts of the bereaved family, because no power known 

1 Dec. 18, 1892, a little more than four months after Ralph was 
drowned, a little brother was horn, whom the grateful parents named 
Rufus Dudley. 



Conclusion. 253 

to man can sustain them or assuage their grief but the 
sympathy of friends and faith in God. But -our words 
seem empty and our pen halting. We only know to a 
certainty that none could be more moved with sympa- 
thy and love toward the afflicted family than are the 
members of Lafayette Street Church and congregation. 
Ought we to dare to wish the lovely boy again on earth ? 
We cannot, for we believe God has taken him to a life 
of higher usefulness and love ; but from our hearts we 
pray that the God of love will send a double portion of 
His blessing and comfort to the suffering, sorrowing ones 
who linger here. 

" The funeral services, attended by many friends from 
Buffalo and Orange, New Jersey, were held, August 9th, 
in our church, and the burial was at beautiful Forest 
Lawn." 

The following touching tribute from the pen of Dr. 
Farrand appeared in the " New York Evangelist" : — 

a teacher's tribute to his pupil. 

The death by drowning of Ralph Robinson Green, 
only son of Rev. Rufus S. Green, D.D., of Orange, 
N. J., suddenly ended a life of great promise. 

One cannot speak truthfully of him without seeming 
to speak extravagantly. But as both Dr. Given and my 
son 1 confirm my statements, I am satisfied that my 
enthusiasm for Ralph has not led me into any extrava- 
gance of expression. 

Entering Newark Academy in September, 1890, he 
at once took the front rank in a large and very tal- 
ented class, and maintained it to the end, finishing his 
preparation for the classical course in Princeton Col- 

1 Dr. Given and Dr. Wilson Farrand, professors in the Academy. 



254 An All- Around Boy. 

lege, and passing his examination with credit in June 
last. 

He was unanimously chosen President of his class, 
being without exception the pupil most beloved, hon- 
ored, and trusted both by his fellow-pupils and by his 
teachers. His gentle and sympathetic nature won all 
hearts, while his modest manliness of character com- 
manded respect and admiration. His delicate sense of 
propriety, and his conscientiousness in the performance 
of every duty made his teachers look upon him more as 
a friend than as a pupil. I have never known another 
who united such lovely and winning traits with so much 
manly strength and ability. 

In his work as a student he was clear, regular, and 
thorough. He was never hurried, never spasmodic, and 
never superficial. Whatever he had to do was done at 
the proper time, and the result was a steady progress, 
and the formation of habits which gave promise of the 
highest success as a scholar. 

His literary gift was remarkable. His style was easy, 
graceful, and finished to an unusual degree, but without 
any trace of artificiality. Especially noticeable was the 
absence of inaccuracies and crudities, so generally found 
in young writers. Indeed, it is very seldom that we 
find one possessing such a gift of fluent and graceful 
expression, and there was every reason to look for the 
development of most brilliant powers as a writer. 

He had the strongest and clearest intellect that I have 
ever met in one so young. 

The traits and qualities which gave him such power 
and influence in the school would have given him 
great power among men. 

The world has sore need of such as he. 

S. A. Farrand, 
Head Master, Newark Academy. 



Conclusion. 255 

The affection which Dr. Farrand had for Ealph was 
thoroughly reciprocated. Indeed he loved' all his 
teachers in the Academy. One of the last conversa- 
tions I had with him was regarding them, in which he 
asked me to write and tell them of my satisfaction 
with his course under their tuition. It was only 
another evidence of his thoughtful and loving way of 
giving pleasure to others. 

I cannot close the book without the prayer that 
many youthful readers may be helped by it to a happy 
life, to a life that is as true and noble as it is happy, — 
happy because true and noble. May their fathers 
and mothers rejoice in them, as Ealph's father and 
mother rejoiced in him ! 

And now we take up our work again with brave 
hearts, and with a desire strengthened a hundredfold 
to do the Lord's will. We do not murmur against 
God. Eather with deepest gratitude we thank Him 
for the seventeen years of our boy's sweet and beauti- 
ful life, the remembrance of which will be an abiding 
inspiration and joy. 



THE END. 



